Mjolnir: Harry Potter and the Hammer of Thor
by MrZ1289
Summary: Harry and his friends embark on a journey to find the legendary Mjolnir before Voldemort can. The conclusion to the Merlin Saga! ABANDONED
1. To Resist is to Destroy

**12.25.2006**

**12:02 PM**

Just as the sun reached its peak on a bitter winter day, Harry put the finishing touch on the last of five cabins they had erected over the last month and a half. While plans were slowly forming for their assault on the destroyed Ministry building, nothing substantial had happened. A scouting party to London had come back stating that they believed that the Hall of Records had, in fact, survived Xavier's attack. However, it was going to take a miracle to get to it. So, for the last month, they had focused instead on figuring out somewhere to live. They had decided to take the remains of the ancient castle and build five smaller stone cabins. Each one fit nearly fifty people in it. While there certainly wasn't a whole lot of personal space, it was much warmer than sleeping in tents in the cold.

Xavier also oversaw the building of central command. While the New Order Army was still disbanded, no one had walked away. So, with Harry, Xavier and Hermione in charge, they organized themselves into another fighting force. They had no name and no official structure but they were determined to fight Voldemort and Merlin to the last man. The central command building housed the living quarters for Harry, Xavier, Hermione, and all of the remaining Weasleys. It also had the main mess hall and running showers, complete with magically created hot water.

Just as Harry finished up the last cabin, Hermione approached him.

"Finishing up?" she asked blandly.

"Yeah. Luckily we can do this with magic. It would have taken us months to build these otherwise." Harry replied as he stored his wand back in his blood red winter robes. Harry and Xavier had made a secret trip to Diagon Alley just after he had awoken. Madam Malkin had stealthy made 500 sets of robes, half men and half women, half wither and half summer. While no one knew exactly where all of the robes and extra clothing had come from, he suspected that many of them could have guessed.

"I know. You guys did a really wonderful job. By the way, lunch is ready." Hermione added.

"Great! I'm starving!" Harry said as he looked at Hermione's face, which suddenly appeared very urgent. She suddenly leaned in and gave him a huge hug. Harry didn't have to wait long to guess the intent.

_"Meeting tonight 7. George is ready." _she said as she gripped him tightly. She held on for a couple seconds longer before letting go and taking Harry's arm as they made their way to the mess hall.

If George was ready, that meant that they could move soon. Maybe even that night.

* * *

><p><strong>7:00 PM<strong>

"George, you're up." Xavier said as he took his seat at the large circular table they had placed in the Meeting Room.

George stood up and finished gathering some papers before he spoke up.

"I've spent the last month sneaking into London and Hogsmeade to take inventory on my supplies at both of my stores there. Thankfully, Voldemort hadn't destroyed them because I have stockpiles of explosives there."

"Why am I not surprised?" Molly Weasley said from the back as she rolled her eyes.

"Thanks, Mum. Anyway, I think I've got a plan figured out." he said as he lifted a map of Great Britain. He had marked the approximate location of Malfoy Manor and Hogwarts, while also marking Grimmauld Place, Shell Cottage, and former Ministry. Rumors had it that Voldemort had no intention of building a new Ministry in London for the simple reason that he believe that when he ruled the world, he could build a castle wherever he liked and run the world from there.

"We will need people at all of these locations, some with a myriad of magical fireworks, courtesy of Weasley's Wizarding Weezes." George added with a wink. "We believe that Voldemort is operating out of Malfoy Manor again. That's where most of the Death Eaters that we've followed for the past month have been going, anyway. So, we have a group stationed outside Malfoy Manor. They fire all of their fireworks towards the Manor. From what we've discovered, the Manor is not as well protected as it has been in the past. I think it has something to do with Lucius' death and Draco choosing the right side for once."

"Very funny, Weasley." Draco replied with a grim smile.

"Anyway, they fire towards the manor. We assume this will draw the attention of the Death Eaters but hopefully not Merlin or Voldemort. We want them to be focused on you but not involved in the attack. Then, we begin to assault known Death Eater holdings in London. No public buildings or public places. All private residences."

"OK. We've done all that. How does that get us the files on Thor?" Harry asked. Long ago, Harry decided they were done keeping secrets and so they had sat everyone down and told everyone all they knew. Merlin's Horcrux. The prophecy of the White Wizard. Everything.

"Well, we hope that this keeps them occupied long enough for us to sneak into the old Ministry. I snuck in there once. Now, I'm not going to lie: the place is a death trap. The lifts aren't going to work and no stairs go down to the Hall of Records. Therefore, we're going to have to destroy one of the lifts and lower ourselves down that shaft. From what I saw, the lifts appeared to be in pretty good shape. So, I think we can safely assume that the Hall is still there."

"So, when can we do it?" Xavier asked him.

"Well, it will be a couple days before I can get the fireworks here. But after that, I think we should be ready to go. We don't really need anything specifically to get this done right."

"What about New Year's Eve? At midnight?" Hermione suggested softly.

"Why then?" Harry asked her.

"They won't expect it. I imagine that other than Voldemort and Merlin, they'll be too busy celebrating to expect an attack." she reasoned.

Harry had to admit that her logic was sound, just like it always was.

"I think it sounds like a good idea." Harry replied.

Harry watched as Xavier stood up.

"I think it sounds good, George. Any questions?"

Despite the usual people all being there, there were surprisingly no questions.

"New Year's Eve at Midnight then. Everyone needs to start preparing. Get back to training for defensive spells. We'll let you know early next week who is going where. Thanks for coming everyone."

With that, everyone began to slowly file out of the room. Harry waited until it was just himself, Hermione, Xavier, and George left.

"We know who's going to the Ministry at least." Harry said with a smirk.

"We probably do." Xavier replied. "The four of us and two or three more."

"It's good to be doing something again." Hermione said with a smile.

"Yeah, it is." Xavier said. "Let's hope we get what we're looking for. Because people are going to die either way."


	2. Peace and Quiet

**12.30.2006**

**3:32 AM**

"Hermione, you need to come back to bed." Xavier said as he covered her up with her winter robe. Xavier had awoken abruptly to a bad dream and an empty bed. While the bad dream was obviously disconcerting, it was nothing compared to waking up alone when he was so used to Hermione being there with him. So, Xavier collected Hermione's thickest winter robes and walked outside of the central command building and saw Hermione standing out there, staring out at the moon.

"I would if I could, Xavier." she said through a shiver and she relished the warmth her robe brought her.

"What's on your mind?" Xavier asked her.

"I just can't seem to get rid of this horrible feeling. The last time we did something this aggressive, Ron died." she said as she turned to face him. "I couldn't stand if something like that happened to you."

"Hermione, you're coming with me to the Ministry. I'll be protected by you, George and Harry. How could anything happen to me?" Xavier said through a smile.

"Don't joke about this! We're going to be going into a building that should be condemned, Xavier. There's a chance that the whole building could fall down on us."

"I'm not joking, 'Mione. I just know that I have the best wizards alive to protect me."

Hermione fell back towards Xavier as his arms wrapped around her. He loved the warmth that she provided when he held her tight.

"I love you, Hermione."

"I love you." Hermione said in return.

Suddenly, something came into his mind.

"Winky."

Instantly, the little house elf popped up in front of him.

"What can Winky do for you, Headmaster?"

Xavier knelt down next to the diminutive house elf, sticking his knee in the cold snow.

"Can you get me to London later today?"

"Of course, Headmaster. What time?"

"How does five o'clock sound?"

"It sounds fine, Headmaster."

"You can call me Xavier, Winky." Xavier said with a smile.

"Of course, Mr. Xavier." Winky replied. She then knelt into a short bow and with a turn, she was gone.

Xavier rolled his eyes as he stood and he grabbed a hold of Hermione again.

"What was that all about?" Hermione asked him softly.

"We're going on a date in the Muggle district in London tonight." Xavier said.

"A date? In London? Xavier, do you realize how dangerous that is?" Hermione exclaimed.

"We're going to the Muggle district, staying away from anything magical. Voldemort isn't going to have people there until he's conquered everything."

Hermione seemed to accept this, although Xavier could tell that she was still apprehensive.

"Xavier, what if we used Winky?"

"Hermione," Xavier started. "we are."

"I meant to get into the Ministry." Hermione replied calmly.

Instantly, Xavier started thinking. Could it be possible? Could Winky get them in some place that she had never seen?

"Winky!"

Again, the miniature elf appeared.

"Mr. Xavier?"

"Can you Apparate to places you've never been before?"

"Mr. Xavier?"

"Can you Apparate somewhere you've never been?" Xavier repeated.

"Sometimes, it often depends on how far Winky has to go or how far underground she has to go."

"What about the Hall of Records?"

"Mr. Xavier, how far under is it?" Winky asked, nervously using his first name.

"Around ten stories, Winky. Do you think its possible?"

Winky sat there, bare feet in the snow, thinking deeply.

"If Winky can get close, Winky can do it, Winky thinks.

* * *

><p><strong>5:00 PM<strong>

Xavier had spent the whole day getting ready for his trip to London with Hermione. He had spent the last thirty minutes trimming the beard that he had neglected since the destruction of Hogwarts months ago. He had summoned Winky three times to make sure that things would work exactly as he had planned.

Finally, it was time to go. Xavier stepped outside of his room and into the common room that lie in the center of all of the bedrooms that were within the Central Command building. Just as he stepped out, Hermione too stepped out of her room next door to his. She was wearing a grey and black striped sweater with matching black pants and black heels. She covered this with a silver winter robe that also doubled as fancy looking Muggle winter jacket. Xavier couldn't remember something more beautiful.

"Are you ready?" Xavier asked as he offered her his arm.

"I'm still nervous about this." Hermione admitted. "We're going right into London. I know that Voldemort probably isn't there but I can't imagine that this is going to be safe."

"You worry too much, Hermione." Xavier said with a rare smile. "I've taken every precaution I can think of in outlining our evening."

"I know." she said, finally taking his outstretched arm.

Suddenly, Winky loudly Apparated into the room.

"Mr. Xavier, I have checked our landing point. It is very clear." she said strongly. Xavier had noticed that since giving her more responsibility over the last few hours, that she seemed much happier.

"Thank you, Winky. We're ready whenever you are." Xavier said with a warm smile.

Winky quickly approached the pair and grabbed each of them.

"Hold on tight." Winky declared.

Following her instructions, Xavier and Hermione held on to each other tightly. With a moment, they were gone.

* * *

><p>Xavier hadn't remembered the alley being this damp. Xavier, Hermione, and Winky had been transported to an alley behind an apartment complex far away from downtown London. Being a former Auror and Headmaster of Hogwarts, Xavier often had information that no one else had. For instance, Xavier knew that there wasn't a single magical family within twelve blocks of them, the largest non-magical area in the city.<p>

"Sorry it's so wet." Xavier murmured in embarrassment.

"It's fine, Xavier." she said with a sweet smile towards him. "Now, where are we going?"

"Only a couple places but I hope you'll enjoy them." Xavier said softly, hoping he put enough mystery into his voice.

Xavier led Hermione out of the alleyway and into the city at large. They walked for nearly an hour, talking about any number of things. They talked about their jobs, about their dreams, about anything but Voldemort and Merlin. Finally, they reached a much quieter part of town. There was a small park and in the center of the park was a cemetery. Surrounding the park were numerous brownstone style homes, all of them with various amounts of human activity, ranging from none at all to a whole family watching the television in the front room. Xavier could see that Hermione was obviously nervous.

"Not a single one of them magic." Xavier said reassuringly. "Plus, they aren't going to see anything other than a walk in the park."

Hermione smiled weakly, although Xavier could tell that she was still uncomfortable. However, she took Xavier's hand into her's as Xavier led them through the park. For another fifteen minutes, they enjoyed walking into the peaceful park. Xavier led her all the way into the center of the park and into the cemetery.

"Why are we here, Xavier?" she asked nervously.

"You'll see in a few moments." Xavier said with a sad smile.

The two of them walked in silence until finally Xavier pulled her to a stop in front of one of the larger tombstones.

"Hey." Xavier said softly.

"Hi." Hermione replied with a smile.

"I wasn't talking to you." Xavier said in a whisper. Suddenly, he waved his wand and a light hovered in front of the tombstone. It read:

_Robert and Ellen Mitchell  
>October 1, 1953 and December 21, 1951-December 30, 2004<em>

_"Full of life and love, they live in love and life forever."_

"Xavier..." Hermione said.

"Hermione," he said as he took her hands in his. "I would like you to meet my parents."

"Xavier, I don't know what to say." Hermione said with a tear in her eye.

"Hermione, my parents are gone, my brother might as well be, my grandparents died just after I was born, and my cousins all moved away the second I was thrown in jail. You are all I have left. I wanted to know that if something had ever happened to me, that my parents had been given the opportunity to meet you."

Hermione seemed to be at a loss of words. Xavier knew that she had to understand the importance of this to him.

"Who said that?" she said quietly.

"Who said what?" Xavier asked in confusion.

"Full of life and love, they live in love and life forever. Who said it?" Hermione asked, clarifying herself.

"Oh, that. I said that at their funeral. I gave the eulogy. It was actually my brother's idea to put it on the headstone." Xavier admitted.

"What?" Hermione said in surprise.

"Yeah, I didn't know that he had done it until this time last year. I always thought that it had been the family of someone who I had put in Azkaban or something like that. Then, last year when Rich and I were brought in by Minerva for our interview, I found out. He was so angry with me when I got the job over him that he attacked me outside the castle. He basically admitted it to me then." Xavier said sadly. Tears began to steam slowly down his face. Xavier hated showing weakness to anyone, even someone he loved as much as Hermione.

"They would be very proud of you, Xavier." Hermione said as she wiped a tear away from his face.

"I certainly hope so. Two years ago, I came home to Harry Potter sitting in my living room. I knew something was wrong. Harry and I had worked together before but we had never been too social. After I moved up to Kingsley's assistant four months before that, I hadn't seen him once."

"Harry told you?"

"Yeah. Apparently he wasn't even the Auror on the case since he only really dealt with national security cases at that point. But he said that he felt like he would best be able to tell me and give me the support I needed." Xavier replied.

"Wow. I didn't know that."

"Yup. Now, we can say goodbye and then I have one thing planned for this evening." Xavier said as he turned and kneeled in front of the tombstone. "Don't worry, Ma. I'll be back to see you soon. Tell Dad he needs to keep working on that swing. I know wizards golfing isn't too heard of but just because I'm a big, famous wizard doesn't mean I'm going to take it easy on him."

Xavier chuckled to himself before getting more serious.

"I miss you so much. I'll figure out a way to get him back, I promise. And yes, I do love her. She's wonderful. The saddest thing about all of this is that you will never be given the opportunity to meet her. But, I can't dwell on that. Later, Ma and Pa. I love you."

Finally, Xavier stood and wiped his eyes.

"I'm sure they were wonderful people." Hermione said as she brought him in for a hug.

"They were." Xavier whispered in her ear. "Now, for my next trick!"

Suddenly, Xavier turned and everything was black.

* * *

><p>Xavier and Hermione came to a stop in the middle of a nicely arranged living room. Instantly, Hermione was wary.<p>

"Xavier, where are we?" Hermione asked nervously.

"My apartment." Xavier said simply.

"That's what I thought." Hermione replied tersely. "What happened to no magical places?"

"Don't worry, Hermione. One of the last things I did as Grand Warlock before Merlin arrested us was to take the liberty of erasing numerous locations from the magical trace system. My apartment, yours, Ron's, and Harry and Ginny's place. Then, I locked it into the system. Now, the only person who can fix it is me, Harry, or you. They were meant to be backup locations, in case the Ministry or Hogwarts fell. Unfortunately, it looks like we may end up needing them."

"How do you know they haven't been your locks?" Hermione asked. She hated the idea of being stuck in a small apartment when the Death Eaters came knocking. Suddenly, a knock pounded on the door. Instantly, Hermione drew her wand and aimed it at the door. Xavier rushed across the room and pulled her arm down.

"Calm down, 'Mione. It's dinner."

Xavier turned around and opened the door slowly. Sure enough, a man stood there, clad in a cheesy uniform and holding a bad obviously meant for pizza.

"Bruce Wayne?" the man asked with a surprised look on his face.

"Yeah, that's me." Xavier replied with confidence.

"You paid over the phone, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"Great." the man replied as he took one large pizza out of the bag and handed it to Xavier. "I love your name by the way. Nolan's movie was great."

"I know." Xavier replied unconvincingly as he took the pizza. "Good evening."

"Evening."

Xavier closed the door and turned to Hermione.

"Nolan? Who or what is a Nolan?" Xavier asked, obviously very confused.

"Christopher Noal is a muggle movie director. He directed a new movie based off of a superhero named Batman. The character's name was Bruce Wayne." Hermione informed him with a sheepish smile. She had to remind herself that even though she managed to keep up with what was going on the Muggle world, some other wizards had chosen not to do so.

"No kidding?" Xavier replied as he took the pizza and set it down on the small dining room table. "Pizza?"

Hermione quickly moved to join him at the table.

"Why pizza?" she asked softly.

"We never get to do anything normal. So I thought maybe if we were able to hang around my apartment and just eat dinner then we could be normal, at least for tonight."

Hermione smiled to herself as she took her first piece and set it on her plate. While most men would have gotten for something extravagant, Xavier relished the normalcy of take-out pizza in his own apartment. For the first time in months, Hermione felt a small amount of peace settle over her. She knew that if they survived this, she would make sure that Xavier never lost this sense of peace and quiet again.


	3. Underneath the Fire and Ash

**12/31/2006**

**10:54 PM**

"Are we ready?" Harry asked the small group there.

Everyone nodded slowly. They knew that what they were planning on doing was royally dangerous with a worst case scenario of enraging the most powerful Dark Wizard of all time. Harry saw that no one appeared to be too afraid despite this morbid fact.

"Good. Xavier, let's run it one more time."

Xavier quickly stood up and began pointing to the map of London that George had provided for the mission.

"The main group is myself, Harry, Hermione, George, and Daniel, our friend from the US." Xavier said as he indicated towards the back of the room where the American wizard stood. "We are going to the Ministry with Winky at moments after midnight. We're going into the Hall of Records, removing files on Thor, and getting out."

Xavier finished highlighting the Ministry of Magic and moved on to the other groups.

"Luna and Ginny, you are taking your group to Malfoy Manor with the supplies that George has given you. Has your group had time to work with them to ensure no problems arise?" Xavier asked the pair of them.

"We'll be fine, Xavier. I'm a Weasley, I specialize in destroying things." Ginny said with a grin that Fred would have been proud of.

"Great." Xavier said, returning her smile. "Katarine, Pierre, and Alek, you are taking your troops to the location two, the home of the Crabbe family. Again, you've had enough time to work with your equipment?"

"Oui. I believe zat we will be fine." Pierre said with a grimace.

"Great. Finally, Draco and Severus, you are going to take the remaining contingent of our forces, combined with the few Polish, Italian, and Greek troops that didn't leave, and you are going to the Lestrange Estate. While none of them are living, we do believe that there is an incredibly high concentration of Death Eaters there. Now,-"

"Yes, Mitchell, we can work our fireworks." Draco said with a sneering smile. While Harry was glad that Draco was on their side, that smile still made him want to beat Malfoy to death.

"Great. In order to ensure perfect timing, we will leave here forty-five minutes prior to the time of the assault. From there, you will wait in silence until the go sign is given by myself." Xavier added.

"Don't worry about being particularly offensive." Harry said with a knowing look to George. "_You know what I mean."_

"Watch your words, Potter." George replied with a huge grin.

"Anyway, don't worry about trying to kill everyone. You are there as a distraction. Be that distraction. We've got enough fireworks and explosives to light up London. Let them do the work for you and then fill in behind them. Also, all of these places have some kind of Apparation Ward. When you get there, choose a location that you can easily retreat outside of the wards and get out."

Xavier nodded in agreeement and then spoke up again.

"Right. We're looking at fifteen minutes max. Even if we aren't out, you need to be on a timer. At ten minutes, you need to be pulling back. Don't turn and run. That's the best way for them to pick you off. Pull back together and mark the edge of the ward. Once everyone has reached that point, Apparate back to Hogsmeade."

Finally, Hermione stood up and instantly, Harry recognized the look in her eyes. She had something depressing to say.

"Before we go, you have to know. The success of this mission is paramount to ending this war. However, the success of your individual missions are based off of your ability to work together and avoid taking casualties. If for whatever reason, you are injured and/or captured, know that we cannot afford another mission so soon after this one to retrieve any prisoners they may take. So, if anyone is injured, do what you can to get them out. Unfortunately, we need to make decisions based on what is good for the group and trying to drag a bunch of injured people away from the battle is not going to be effective."

The room had gone dead silent as Hermione spoke. No one disagreed with her. In fact, everyone knew it needed to be this way.

"So, your first priority is to protect yourself. Work together to prevent any injuries from happening. Then, as you retreat do what you can to get everyone out. However, if the option is between saving one and saving twenty, the answer is simple, no matter how much that person may mean to you or anyone else. We are at war."

The once joking and almost joyful mood in the room was now gone. Everyone was now all business.

"Man, you certainly know how to light up a room." Harry whispered to Hermione as she sat back down next to him.

"Shut up, Harry." Hermione said with a slight grin. "You know I'm right."

"I never said you weren't." Harry replied. "I was just wondering if there was a more depressing way to tell them. I don't think yours was effectively morbid enough."

Finally, Hermione slapped Harry as they finally decided to get back to the meeting.

"If there are no further questions, everyone is to immediately report to their commanders for their orders and ship out. Let's move, people!" Xavier ordered, finally initiating their first assault in many months.

* * *

><p><strong>11:54 PM<strong>

All of the other groups had taken off about a half hour before and only the group that planned on infiltrating the ruins of the Ministry remained at the complex. Normally before a mission things were pretty quiet. But for whatever reason, this particular group was bucking the trend. Harry thought this had to do with the inclusion of the one-eared wonder, George Weasley. For the last forty minutes a ridiculous number of practical jokes had been played as George did his best to keep us loose. Currently, George was telling old stories of when the Weasley children were younger.

"Finally, he decided to try and get away! He decided to run up to his room and hide in the attic! Well, what we did know is that there was a ghoul in the attic! We had been hearing this horrible noises for the longest time but we always thought it was a runaway gnome or a bird's nest. Fortunately for us, little Ronnekins discovered that it was a ghoul! He jumped down the ladder and hurried outside where he hid all night. Funniest damn thing I had ever seen."

Harry turned and looked at Hermione. She stood back and away from the group aways. Tears silently ran down her face as she watched George start a dramatic retelling of the epic tale, "How Ron's Teddy Bear turned into a Spider." However, these were not tears of sadness or fear. Instead, the large smile on her face said that these were tears of laughter and of joy. He slowly made his way around the group and pulled up next to Hermoine.

"How are you holding up?" he asked her softly so that no one else could hear him.

"I'm fine, Harry." she replied through her giggles. She had turned to Harry and saw that he remained mildly unconvinced. "I promise you, I'm okay. For the first time in a long time, I can think about him. It hurts to know that he's gone but I know that he wouldn't have wanted me to live in misery. It hurts to know that I'll never get to speak to him again but I know that he's right here with all of us."

Harry smiled as he felt a small tear escape his eyes.

"Of course he is, Hermione. Just like we would never leave each other, he would never leave us. We're family. All of us." Harry replied.

"I know we are." Hermione said, her voice leading, as if she had something to say.

"You aren't sure about your relationship with Xavier." Harry whispered.

"Oh I'm sure. I know that right here and now, I love him." Hermione replied boldly. "But what happens if we win? What happens if this war actually ends? Then what? I'm supposed to just move in with him and we'll get married and that's the end of it. The foundations of our relationship is based on loss, fear and grief. He lost Demelza, I lost Ron. We both lost you for a time. In our despair, we sought each other."

"What's your question?" Harry asked.

"Is it real? Will it last? Is this anything more than comfort for our loss or is this something that can work?"

"I think that when the time comes for that, you'll know the answer." Harry said cryptically.

Hermione turned and gave him a stark glare.

"That was absolutely no help."

Harry grinned.

"Of course it was. You can't know the answer to your question yet. But, when it comes time to know, you'll know what's right."

"Harry Potter, you are absolutely maddening." Hermione said with a smile.

"I learned from the best." Harry replied with a pointed smile.

"Thanks." Hermione replied. "How are you not worried right now? I'm okay because Xavier is here but he sent Ginny to Malfoy Manor where Voldemort and Merlin are sure to be stationed."

Harry stood there and thought about what she had said for a moment before he replied. He knew that he was worried. Obviously, he had to be. But, he knew that if there was anyone out there that could take care of herself, it was Ginny.

"I trust Ginny to do the job we gave her. Plus, I'm pretty sure she volunteered for it. Something about making Fred proud." Harry said as he turned back to watching George imitate Ron jumping across the room. A quick look at Xavier said everything. He slowly nodded his head, indicating that it was time to get ready. Harry quickly turned back to Hermione, taking her hands in his.

"You will see him again, Hermione." Harry told her.

"You really think so?"

"I know you will. Even if its just in your dreams."

Harry felt as Hermione instantly pulled him into a hug.

"Thank you, Harry." she whispered into his ear.

"Not a problem."

Finally, after a loving and heart-felt embrace, the two best friends let go of each other.

"Harry, I don't know what I would have done if you and Ron hadn't saved me from that troll." she said, a small tear escaping her eye.

"Well, you probably would have been crushed by the giant troll." Harry said with a snarky look on his.

"That," Hermione replied with a playful smack on the shoulder. "or I would have been safe for both of these wars and wouldn't have had anything to worry about."

"Yeah, but then you wouldn't have met Ron." Harry suggested.

"Or you, Harry. Regardless of whatever happened between Ron and I, the two of you were always equal in my eyes. You were, and are, my best friends. I would take death at the hands of Lord Voldemort himself a thousand times over if it meant I met and befriended the two of you."

Harry was stunned. He couldn't remember Hermione ever speaking to anyone about how she felt about the two of them. Harry knew that he thought that Hermione was like a sister to him but in all of these years together, 16 to be exact, he had never heard her speak like this to him or anyone else.

"Thanks." was all Harry could get out.

Suddenly, Xavier spoke up over George's telling of Percy's BIGHead Boy badge.

"Alright, Winky is ready. We're moving." he said firmly without a trace of fear. Harry wished that he could hide his emotions as well as Xavier did. Of course, the running joke throughout the camp was that his feelings for Hermione encompassed the whole of his emotion meter. This joke was never shared with Hermione herself and Harry had to keep himself from laughing in front of her and then having to try and lie to her, an act at which he was notoriously poor.

Quickly, everyone formed a circle around the miniature elf, each person placing a hand on her.

"Winky has never transported this many people before. It may take a couple of tries, although Winky hopes not." Winky said, almost to herself.

"Is everyone ready?" Harry heard Xavier say somewhere on the other side of the circle. The silence that followed was taken as an answer.

"Take us away." Harry said to the elf.

Instantly, each person felt that their feet had lifted off the ground and the whole group had been squeezing through a small tube. In a second, they were gone.

* * *

><p><strong>01.01.2007<strong>

**12:01 AM**

None of them landed on their feet. In fact, only Winky and Hermione actually landed together. Instead, most everyone else had been dropped on the floor close to where the elf had come down. Gingerly everyone picked themselves up in the darkness that reigned supreme inside the abandoned Ministry.

"Did we make it to the right place?" Hermione asked.

"Yes." was all Xavier offered in reply. Harry thought that he seemed short with everyone recently.

"How do you know, Xavier?" Harry asked, hoping he would elaborate.

"Everyone take a whiff of the air." On command, each person drew in air. Harry noticed that it smelled rank. Harry recognized it from somewhere. Then, it hit him.

"Fiendfyre." Harry replied simply.

"Yeah, definitely the signs of a place burned by cursed fire." Xavier said softly before he raised his wand.

_"Lumos Maxima!"_

Instantly, a blast of light flew towards the ceiling lighting up the whole Atrium. It looked like hell on earth. Everything was black and charred, lucky just to be standing.

"Man, you really did a number on this place." George said without a trace of humor.

"Well, I was kind of angry that day." Xavier returned. "Let's get moving. Don't touch anything. This whole place could come down."

Slowly, the group made its way towards the lifts. It took an agonizingly long time to get there, trying to avoid all of the burned wreckage. Harry even had the misfortune of turning the light he had conjured from his wand towards the first lift area. There, the doors stood open and inside were two Death Eaters, burned to ash but still standing, a living urn.

"That's disgusting." Hermione said softly, knowing that Xavier had done this.

"Yes. It is." Xavier replied as he walked away.

Harry couldn't imagine what Xavier was feeling. Harry had had a lot of bad moments but thankfully had never been forced to physically relive them. Instead, he relived them at night in his dreams. Xavier was now being forced to relive one of the worst things he had ever done in person. No wonder Xavier seemed unnaturally quiet.

Finally, after nearly ten minutes, they finally reached the area where the lift to the Hall of Records was. Harry and George swiftly approached the door and very easily pulled it apart, revealing the empty chamber. Next, Winky stepped forward and looked the long way down to the bottom of the vacant elevator shaft. Harry kneeled down to her.

"Do you think that you can get us down there? We don't need to get into the Hall itself. Just to the bottom of the lift."

Slowly, as she continued to check to the bottom, she nodded her head. Harry stood and turned to Xavier, who nodded, giving Harry the rest of the mission's command.

"Winky is going to take myself and Hermione down to the bottom. The rest of you are on the lookout. Fire salamanders tend to breed in the leftovers of Fiendfyre so be on the lookout. Xavier, you're obviously in charge. Send your Patronus if you're in trouble."

Xavier nodded in confirmation. Harry turned to Winky and saw that Hermione had already place her hand on one of the elf's shoulders.

"Take us away." Harry repeated from earlier as he placed his hand on the other shoulder.

* * *

><p>This time, both Harry and Hermione landed square on their feet. Harry instantly reverted back to the Harry that had existed at the end of the Second Wizarding War, large and in charge.<p>

"Wands out. Let's make this quick." Harry said before pointing his lighted wand ahead of them. Instantly, the pair of them blew open the doors to the General Hall. Harry noticed, as the pair of them ran towards the back and towards the Great Hall, that the fires appeared to have not gotten this far. That was wonderful news. Finally, after a couple minutes of running, they reached the doors for the Great Hall. Hermione instantly stepped forward and spoke to the doors.

"I, Hermione Jean Granger, Minister of Magic, hereby request full access to the Great Hall." Hermione said authoritatively.

"Very nice." Harry said with a sly smile.

"Thank you."

Suddenly, the doors spoke back.

**_"Does the Minister have permission to be here?"_**

This time, it was Harry that stepped forward.

"I, Harry James Potter, Head of the Auror Department and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, hereby grant full access to the Great Hall." Harry said, utilizing his best impersonation of his best friend.

"Not funny, Potter." Hermione said as she rolled her eyes.

"I disagree."

Suddenly, the huge doors in front of them opened. The Golden Pair rushed in the doors and began to search. For nearly a half hour, they came up with nothing. The sheer volume of the files they were looking through began to work against Harry and Hermione. Suddenly, he heard Hermione cry out.

"Harry!"

Instantly, Harry dropped what he was doing and ran to the other side of the room where she was. Harry was saddened to see that Hermione didn't seem to have any files in her hands.

"Hermione! What is it?" Harry asked in confusion.

"The Lost Texts." Hermione said simply. She was very excited and seemed to think that Harry would know exactly what she was talking about. He didn't.

"We have the book, Hermione. If you tell me that the information is in there, I will murder you right here."

"No! There's a secret chamber in the Great Hall that housed the Texts. There was also some other really sensitive information in there. I'm sure that the information would be in there."

"Alright, let's look around."

Another ten minutes of searching got them nowhere and Harry was about to give up when again Hermione yelled from across the room. A quick trip and he was there, staring at the wall. He was not amused.

"Hermione, we've been at this for too long already. What is it?"

"Look." she said as she pointed towards the wall. There on the wall was a small indent, shaped like a hammer.

"It can't be that easy can it?" Harry asked her in disbelief.

"The one thing I have to save about wizards is that we often lose our creativity and cleverness in exchange for magical prowess." Hermione stated.

"Thank goodness for you."

Hermione raised her wand and waved it a couple times towards the small mark in the wall to no avail. They tried for another few minutes, still with no success. Finally, Harry got frustrated and stuck his wand in the mark. Instantly, the mark glowed blue and a door opened up just ten feet away from them.

"How do you have clearance?" Hermione asked him. "I didn't even have clearance!"

_**"Clearance is given when it is needed."**_

Ah, the scary voice from the ceiling again. Harry had missed her. Quickly, Harry led Hermione into the small room. It was dark but from what Harry could see was that the room was fairly unused, although it appeared that someone had been here.

"How did Merlin know where to find the texts?" Hermione presented.

"He'd been here before." Harry said, coming to the same realization as her. "When he needed information. He must have clearance at one point."

"I wonder..." Hermione said to herself. "How long do you keep your clearance?"

_**"As set by the First Wizarding Ministry, clearance is kept for life."**_

"Great." Harry said. "Since he didn't actually die, he still had clearance when he came back."

"What is this place?" Hermione asked again.

_**"This is The Vault. Its purpose is to safely keep the darkest secrets of the world's wizards."**_

"Why here?" Harry asked.

_**"This is where the great wizard Thor, after his many travels, established the first wizarding colony. Here, he left his great legacy before returning to his home to live out his remaining years."**_

"His great legacy?" Harry turned to Hermione, knowing what this meant.

"Which book is it?" Hermione asked hopefully.

_**"You misunderstand, deposed Minister Granger. His legacy is not a book, but his essence."**_

"Excuse me?"

_**"Deposed Head of Aurors Potter, this is among the most magical places on the planet. Here, the first wizard was able to imprint half of his life force, binding it to this place."**_

"A Horcrux." Harry assumed out loud.

_**"The Horcrux is a much darker and weaker version of the magic the Great Wizard performed. No, instead of being bound to an object, he was bound to a place. However, this did not sacrifice his living life force**__**. Instead, upon his passing, half of his life force was placed her and half at his resting place. Each of them properly bound, allowing him access to the living world if he is needed."**_

"Like the Resurrection Stone." Hermione suggested. "He would be here, but he's not here."

_**"You are correct, Ms. Granger. In fact, I believe that he is coming to see you now."**_

"What?" Harry and Hermione said simultaneously.

Suddenly, a blast of white light hit the two of them and they knew no more.


	4. Through the Glass

_I'm looking at you through the glass_

_Don't know how much time has passed_

_Oh God it feels like forever_

_But no one ever tells you that forever feels like home_

_Sitting all alone inside your head_

_Through Glass-Staind_

Harry rolled over and noticed that Hermione laid on the floor next to him. For a brief moment, Harry feared that he had done something awful, something he would regret. Then, just as quickly, Harry remember what had happened to him last before he had passed out. Then, it was Harry noticed that the pair of them still laid on the floor of the Vault. Harry slowly grasped Hermione and shook her.

"Wake up." he whispered softly.

Hermione slowly stirred where she was at and within a few seconds, she awoke. She too appeared horrified at what may have happened. Then, just as Harry had, she appeared to remember everything. Sharply, she sat up and began to look around. Harry too took a look around the room and saw that nothing had changed.

"I guess the magic of the room was able to trick us." Hermione said in disappointment.

**"On the contrary, I think you'll find that my magic did exactly what it was supposed to."**

Suddenly, Harry and Hermione turned and saw a tall, strong, blonde man walk into the room. He appeared to be muscular but nothing out of the ordinary. If Harry had to guess, the man appeared to be roughly sixty years old. The blonde in his beard had started to slowly turn grey and the tips of his hair was silver. He wore dark black battle armor and a blood red cape that draped all the way to the floor. He stood strong and wise and the two of them knew instantly who they were looking at.

"Thor?" Harry said in awe.

The aged wizard smiled and nodded.

**"My birth name was actually Donnan Blair. I was born in the country you know as Scotland in 214 BC to a pair of wealthy landowners. When the king of our land called upon me to fight, I did so willingly. I fought my way up the ranks until I became the General of the army."**

"Did the king know that you were a wizard?" Hermione asked.

**"He did not." **Thor replied with a warm smile. **"Of course, I didn't know that I was a wizard either. In fact, to the day of my death, I was not sure whether I was born with the magic or it was given to me."**

"How could the magic be given to you?" Harry asked. That sentence alone confused him more than ninety percent of the confusing things Hermione had ever said.

**"During a particular campaign, I was separated from my army. I wandered through the mountains, looking for my comrades. Finally, I came to a cave. Inside this cave was this."**

Suddenly, Thor pulled out his hammer, the legendary Mjolnir. It had a long and narrow handle with a solid and square black rock attached to the end of it.

**"It glowed a bright orange. I had never seen anything so beautiful and mystical in all my years. Slowly, I approached it. Despite my great fear, I touched it. Instantly, I felt a great power course through my body. Within moments, and with no instruction, I was able to wield this hammer to do great things. I could control the lightning in the skies and the water of the earth. I was a wizard."**

"It was the first naturally occuring wand." Hermione observed.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, still confused.

"Wands are typically created by magically imbuing wood with a magical substance, like dragon heartstring or phoenix feathers. The wood will then absorb the magical properties of the substance and they will magically fuse, creating a wand. Occasionally, materials like this can accidentally fuse in nature, creating wildly unpredictable combinations."

"That sounds insane." Harry admitted to her.

"It is really. You are more likely to win the Muggle lottery six times in your lifetime than have a wand form in nature."

"Awesome." Harry replied in awe.

"Do you want the wand is made out of?" Hermione asked the legendary wizard.

**"The wood came from an elder tree that had grown nearby. I was able to identify the core as a cross of a chimera hair and thestral hairs."**

"Wow." Hermione said softly.

"What?" Harry asked her.

"The hairs of a chimera have destructive magical properties. They tend to actually destroy the magical qualities of the objects around them. Then, Thestral hairs have incredibly properties. They literally do the exact opposite of that. They accentuate the magic around them, making it more powerful. Elder Wood is incredibly magical but difficult to bind. You almost always need to have a thestral hair to get it to work. The only wand I had ever seen with this combination was the Elder Wand. However, the Elder Wand was actually limited in its power because the thestral hair needed something to ground it."

"What does that mean?"

"The chimera hair would normally keep the thestral hair from working. However, because it is numerous thestral hairs and only one chimera hair, the thestral hairs are actually able to force the chimera hair to work for it. So, instead of draining its power, they all end up working together and the power they create is unparalleled."

**"It didn't hurt that I was a rather good wizard."**

Harry couldn't help but laugh at the off-hand remark from the ancient wizard.

"How did you get the name Thor?" Harry asked him.

**"When I came back and could control lightning and thunder, my people named me Thor, our word for thunder."**

"That's incredible." Hermione replied in wonder.

"Where is the wand now?" Harry asked.

**"Sadly, I cannot guarantee its location. While I have been able to watch the world from my resting place, I prevented this part of my life force from answering any questions by removing its memory. I can tell you that it was my intention to take it back to my home and leave it there with me."**

"Did you curse it in some way?" Harry asked further.

**"I believe that it was my plan to allow whoever touched it one hour of my life force. However, if the person was deemed not worthy of that magic, theirs would be taken away as punishment."**

"So your wand is at your home and if we touch it, we can use it for an hour but if we are unworthy, we will lose our magic?" Hermione inquired.

**"You are correct." **Thor replied.

"Where is your home?" Harry asked.

**"Again, I am unable to answer your questions. My apologies, Mr. Potter. I do wish that I could help you out more."**

"You've been a great help. Where did you serve in your command?" Hermione asked him, hoping that he was not tiring from their relentless assault of questioning.

**"I served in the countries now known as Germany and Norway."**

"Thank you, sir." Harry replied before he turned to Hermione. "Ron wouldn't believe this. The two of us actually talking to the first known wizard. Damn, I wish he would be here."

Suddenly, Thor stepped forward.

**"Ron? Who is this Ron?"**

Harry looked at Hermione, warily before he answered. She looked sad and he knew that if she was forced to answer, she would falter and that was the last thing he could wish upon her at the moment.

"Ron Weasley...was my, our, best friend. He was engaged to be married to Hermione before he died saving my life. He was the brother I had never had."

Thor seemed to be thinking about something. Suddenly, he turned to Harry and extended his hand.

**"Mr. Potter, Ms. Granger, it has been an honor talking with you today. As you can expect, I do not get too many visitors seeking me out in this place. I wish you the best of luck on your journey and hope that you succeed in doing whatever you set out to do."**

"Thank you again, sir. We could have never done this without you."

**"It is my pleasure. Now, I must go. But, I do have a surprise for you."**

"A surprise?" Hermione asked. "What is it?"

**"Close your eyes, count to 60, and you will see."**

Instantly, both of them closed their eyes and began to count. _"What could it be?" _Harry thought as he counted. In his wildest dreams, he couldn't imagine what it could be. The room got cold for just a moment and then got warm again. Finally, the pair of them opened their eyes.

Whatever Harry had thought he was going to see, this was not it. Standing across the room, clad in his Auror robes, was Ron Weasley. He didn't look at day older than when Harry had seen him last and he still had every freckle that had been on his face before.

_"Hi." _Ron said with that big goofy grin that Harry had seen every day at Hogwarts.

Suddenly, Harry looked at Hermione, who hadn't moved or said anything. Then, she dropped. In a flash, Harry moved his way over and caught her, keeping her from hitting the floor.

"Hermione, Hermione, come on 'Mione, wake up." Harry said as he hugged her. He could feel his tears starting to form and he couldn't even imagine what she was thinking. Finally, she was able to get on her feet and look at what was before her. Harry could feel her pull him in tighter around her, not wanting to be let go. _She thinks its a trick._

"What is my Patronus, my birthday, my worst fear, and the last thing you said to me?" Harry asked the image before him.

_"Your Patronus is a stag, the Animagus form of your father. Your worst fear **was **me dying. Now, it's Hermione and Ginny leaving you because they're afraid of you. Your birthday, don't think I forgot about that one, is July 31 and the last thing I said to you was..."_

"Please say it, Ron." Harry said, tilting his head towards Hermione. Harry knew that she needed to hear this.

_"The last thing I said was 'Make sure Hermione is happy. She deserves it.'" _Ron said with a nervous look towards his former fiancee.

Instantly, Hermione burst into sobbing tears and fell to the floor. Harry followed her down to make sure that she didn't hurt herself. Once they were on the floor, she held onto Harry tight, sobbing into his robes. Ron slowly walked from the other side of the room and knelled down next to Hermione. He took his hand and softly brushed it through her hair. If Harry's eyes weren't deceiving him, he thought he saw a stray hair move.

_"I make no apologies for the decision I made, Hermione. I made it so that you and Harry and Ginny would survive. I made it because I knew that my sacrifice would never be in vain and that you would never stop fighting."_

Hermione's reply was a fresh set of sobs. At this point, Harry wasn't sure if this was going to help or hurt her in the long run. Suddenly, Ron looked up at Harry.

_"I think you should do it, Harry. You know how you feel."_

"Really?" Harry said as he felt tears streaming down his face. "Is that you giving me permission?"

_"Harry, you make her happy, even in a time like this. What else could I want for my baby sister?"_

Suddenly, Hermione spoke up.

"I miss you, Ron. Every night, even if it's with Xavier, I wish it was you. We spent years together. I kept telling you I was too busy with work to get married and every time, you listened. Knowing what I know now, I wish you hadn't. I would have said yes. I know I would have, Ron."

_"I know, Hermione. I know you would have. But I respected you too much to do something like that to you. I was waiting for when you were ready. I got to ask you and you said yes."_

"We were only engaged for a week!" Hermione sobbed in reply.

_"And it was the best week of my life." _Ron replied honestly.

"Mine too."

_"Hermione, listen to me." _Suddenly, a magic seemed to pull Hermione out of Harry's arms and into the air in front of Ron. Harry watched as Ron spoke again. _"You have to move on. One way or another, you do. I'm not expecting you to do it today or tomorrow or even the next day, but it needs to happen."_

"Ron-"

_"Not now, Hermione. I don't have a whole lot of time left. Xavier is a good guy, all around good bloke. Be with him. He's not me and thank god, he isn't Harry. I couldn't imagine what you guys would-"_

"Ron..."

_"Right, Hermione. Anyway, Xavier is one of the most respectable men around and he loves you. Think about how horrible things have been for him recently with his parents and his brother and the school that he was in charge of coming to the ground and he still loves you. Just love him back."_

"I can't, Ron, net yet. I love him, I do. But, he's not you." Hermione replied softly.

_"Not everyone can be this wonderful, right?" _Ron said, finally getting his first smile out of her.

Suddenly, Ron reached around her and hugged her. Regardless of whether Hermione could feel it, he knew that it was the one thing in the world she needed.

_"I have to go, Hermione."_

"What?" Harry shot out. "But you just got here?"

_"Thor was only able to keep the gate open for so long. If I don't go back, I'll be stuck here and I want to be there so that when the two of you join me, I can be the first to greet you."_

At this point, both Harry and Hermione were useless. Each one of them tried to talk but all that came out were tears.

_"Take care of each other." _Ron said as he stood up. Slowly, he started to disappear. _"I'll miss you both. Tell everyone I said not to worry about me. Oh, and Harry, your parents want me to tell you that they are more proud of you every day."_

"Thanks, Ron." Harry said, knowing it would be the last thing he would get to say to his friend.

Suddenly, Hermione stood up and shouted.

"I LOVE YOU RON!"

Ron reached a weak and disappearing arm out to touch her cheek and the tears that streamed down her face.

_"I love you too, Hermione. Enjoy your life, take chances, love someone, and you'll see me again someday."_

And just like that, Ron Weasley, the man who saved Harry Potter and who loved Hermione Granger, was gone again. Hermione fell to the floor and Harry grabbed her tight. For what felt like an eternity, they held onto each other, sobbing and mourning the loss of their great friend.


	5. Stories from Beyond

**2:06 AM**

Twenty minutes later, after recomposing themselves, they collected the whole host of books that were in the Vault. Then, Harry and Hermione Apparated back up to the group on the main level. Xavier, George, and Daniel all turned their wands on them in shock. Winky actually fell over

"What happened to fifteen minutes, Potter?" Watson said through gritted teeth.

"Finding the information we were looking for was more difficult than we had anticipated." Harry said sadly. Emotionally, he was not ready to recount what had actually happened and he surely wasn't interested in being grilled.

Unfortunately, Hermione wasn't able to hide her emotions as well. She looked horrible with red eyes and one of the most downtrodden faces Harry had ever seen. Harry wasn't the only one who had noticed.

"'Mione, what's wrong?" Xavier asked her, taking her hands in his.

Harry stepped forward to save Hermione.

"I'll explain in private when we get back. First, we need to get back and see how the others did in not getting killed." Harry replied, forcing a grim smile to his face.

"Totally. This place gives my creeps the creeps." George said.

Instantly, everyone surrounded the small elf or one final time that night and returned to the ruins of Hogwarts.

* * *

><p>Upon their return, they noticed that everyone had waited outside the Central Command building to ensure that the group came back from the Ministry. Harry quickly noticed his favorite red-head running towards him. He approached her and took her tight into his arms. After a quick but tight hug, Harry pulled back. As if she read her mind, she gave a quick status report.<p>

"Marcus Belby was killed by one of the Death Eaters at Malfoy Manor. Plus, Marietta Edgecombe was injured at the Lestrange Estate. Poppy has been looking her over but I'm not sure that she's going to survive."

Although Harry wasn't pleased that people had been hurt and killed, he was happy to know that it wasn't too bad.

"Great. I'll see Marietta later. But first, get everyone in the Command Room. Give them fifteen minutes."

Moments after Ginny walked away to start, he heard someone approach him from behind him.

"I'm not going to tell them everything, Hermione." Harry said knowingly as he turned to face his best friend.

"Really? Why?"

"That's personal. I will probably tell the smaller Command group because they were his family but outside of that, this has nothing to do with our goals."

Hermione slowly pulled Harry into a hug where Harry could feel Hermione sobbing into his robes.

"Can I ask you something, Hermione?"

Hermione pulled away and looked up at Harry. He hated to see the tears in her eyes.

"Why are you crying? I mean besides seeing Ron again?"

Hermione looked like she was actually thinking about an answer, instead of berating Harry like he thought would happen.

"Because he wants me to be happy. He wants me to live my life. That's the best thing I've heard since he asked me to marry him."

"Then be happy, Hermione."

Suddenly, Ginny came running back to him.

"Fifteen minutes be damned apparently. Everyone but the three of us is in there. I think everyone wants to go to bed."

"Great." Harry said as he gave a quick look to Hermione. "Go to bed. I'll tell them."

She nodded slowly before leaning up and giving Harry a brief kiss on this cheek.

"Thank you, Harry."

Then, she turned and headed inside and to her room.

"What was that about?" Ginny asked in confusion.

"I'll explain in a moment."

Then, Harry turned and entered the Central Command building. It was packed and it took Harry a little while to make his way to the front. One look at George and an explosion rocked the room, quieting everyone.

"Settle down everybody, I'll make this quick and then we can all hit the sack. Hermione, who's not here right now because she had a scare while we were at the Ministry, and I managed to locate the information on the location of Mjolnir."

"Well, where is it?" Oliver Wood cried from the back.

"That's the problem. We were given a general location but not exact coordinates. We know that it was taken back to Thor's home but we don't know exactly where that's at."

Instantly, a loud murmur rang over the crowd.

"So this whole night was a waste of time?" Draco asked loudly.

"No. Before Hogwarts' destruction, I managed to look at some information on Thor and we know that there is a castle somewhere in the middle of Norway that he called home. I'm sure it is there. The only problem is that it has been unplottable since he lived there. We have no good way of finding it at the current moment. Fortunately, we were able to take some books from the Ministry that we think will be very helpful in locating it."

"Is that it?" Percy asked.

Harry had very strongly hoped that no one would ask him a question like that. He could lie to everyone but he didn't want to. He just wanted to tell them parts and leave the rest of the people who mattered most. Now, he had to convince everyone that he was telling them everything.

"Yeah, that's it." Harry replied, certainly unconvincing to those who knew him best. "In fact, everyone can go. If the people who live in this building would stay, I have a couple housekeeping things for us to go to bed."

In a moment, the room began to empty. Within just a couple minutes, everyone but Harry, Xavier, and the Weasley family had left.

"Harry James Potter, what are you lying about?" Ginny said harshly.

"I wasn't lying. Well, I was about the housekeeping but I told them everything they needed to know."

"So what do we need to know that they don't?" Bill questioned.

"How we got the information and what happened afterwards." Harry fired back.

"And how did you get this information?" Molly Weasley asked, looking wary.

"Well, we thought the information we were looking for would be in the Great Hall. Unfortunately, after a little searching, Hermione realized it would be in the same location as the Lost Texts. So, we spent the next few minutes looking for where they were stored. Luckily, Hermione managed to locate The Vault, where the Ministry's big secrets are kept."

"Great. Why is this important?" Percy said with as much negativity as he could muster.

"Because we didn't get our information from a book."

"Excuse me?" Xavier interjected.

"Thor took half of his magical lifeforce and bonded it with the Vault. He was literally able to appear to us and give us the information we needed. He talked to us from beyond the grave, telling us the story of how he found Mjolnir and where he may have taken it."

Finally, there were no questions. Everyone just looked at each other in shock. Now, Harry knew what he needed to tell them next. Unfortunately, memories started coming back to him: _Ron with dirt on his nose on the train, the troll in the dungeon, meeting Sirius Black, swimming to the bottom of the lake, Dumbledore's Army, Hermione's birds attacking Ron, the camping trip, destroying Voldemort, the trip to Albania, Auror graduation..._Finally, Harry couldn't stand it anymore. He had been fighting so much to be strong for Hermione that he hadn't had the time to properly accept what he had seen.

Slowly, Harry broke into sobs and sank to the floor. Moments later, he felt Ginny's arms wrap around him.

"What happened?" Ginny whispered.

"Thor held the door open for us."

Suddenly, Harry looked passed the Weasleys and saw Hermione standing in doorway of her room.

"Sorry Harry, I couldn't let you do this on your own." she said as she broke into the group and sat next to Harry, taking his hand. Just her presence seemed to give Harry the strength he needed.

"What do you mean he held the door open?" Charlie asked him.

"Well, his lifeforce being left here, it allowed him to open the door and come back briefly. So, when he was done talking to us, he left the door open."

"Why?" Ginny asked.

"Ron." Harry and Hermione both whispered in unison.

The reaction from the family was exactly as he expected it to be. Molly had to sit down, Arthur had to help her, George, Bill, Percy and Charlie all stood looking dumbfounded, and Ginny began to cry silently.

"Did you see him?" Arthur asked desperately.

All either of them could do was nod.

"Was he...wa.." Molly started through her tears.

"He was wonderful." Harry growled through his own sobs.

"He knew everything." Hermione added. "Harry grilled him like we did during the Second War. There was no trick there. It was him."

"What did he say?" George said, tears rolling down his face.

"He told us that he didn't regret the decision he made, even though he misses us." Harry said.

"He told me that I, that all of us, need to move on with our lives." Hermione said, holding back tears and Harry could feel the grip on his hand getting stronger as she spoke.

Looking at Hermione, Harry spoke again.

"He also said that the best week of his life was the week he was engaged to Hermione."

This was what did Hermione in. Xavier came and sat next to the former Minister of Magic and put his arm around her, comforting her.

"What else did he say?" Ginny asked. Suddenly, something inside Harry snapped. He jumped up onto his feet and ran into his room. He had kept this particular item with him since before Voldemort's Resurrection, waiting for an appropriate time. Finding it, he returned to the main room and stood in front of Ginny.

"He told me that he wanted what was best for his baby sister and that I should stop waiting."

Finally, Harry dropped to one knee. He had waited years to do it. First, because they were too busy working and then because they were too busy fighting a war. Now, Harry wanted it known that no work and no war would ever keep him from loving her.

"I love you, Ginny Weasley. I have for a long time and I've been making a lot of excuses for why I haven't done this. But, Ron made me realize how much I love you. Plus, I got his permission, which was something I always wanted."

Tears streamed from Ginny's eyes as she looked down at Harry.

"Ginny Weasley, would you please marry me?"

Instantly, Ginny burst into tears and began to nod. Then, she suddenly screamed.

"YES!"

Ginny dropped to the floor and hugged her new fiancee. For the rest of the night, the memory of Ron was celebrated by the engagement of his best friend and his sister.

* * *

><p>As Ron looked on at the world, he couldn't have been happier. They were finally together.<p>

"They look good together." Sirius said softly.

"About damn time." Ron replied with a smile.

"I would say so." Remus added.

Even though he knew it would be awhile before he was able to see his friends again, he couldn't imagine being happier than he was right now. He had gotten to see them one more time. He got to tell Hermione he loved her one more time. Now, he would spend years watching them grow together.

"I love you, Hermione." Ron said as he felt two hands on each of his shoulders. He looked back to see James and Lily standing behind him. Tears of joy ran down each of their faces as they watched their son.

"We love you, Harry." they said together.

"We love you all."


	6. And the Walls Came Tumbling Down

**01.01.2007**

**11:34 AM**

On the day after the mission to the Ministry, everyone but Harry got a late start. Harry had already been up for three hours, sitting in their makeshift Hospital Wing with Marietta Edgecombe. Apparently, during the assault on Malfoy Manor, she had been on the receiving end of a particularly nasty blasting curse. Unfortunately, the castor of the particular spell hadn't been particularly powerful and instead of blowing her to pieces like would typically happen if a capable wizard hit something with that curse, she had instead been torn and shredded by not killed.

Harry's conversation with Poppy earlier in the morning hadn't been particularly encouraging.

"Will she survive?" Harry had asked about two hours prior.

Poppy's face sank at the question and Harry knew that the prognosis wasn't good.

"I can regrow the bones in her ribs and spine in an instant. Unfortunately, magic hasn't found a way to truly fix internal organs. I've used almost all of our Essence of Dittany on her to try and help the process along but there's only so much that can do. Right now, I would put her odds at 20%."

"That's her chance of life?" Harry asked.

"Yes and that's if she heals perfectly. As it is, she may have a lot of health problems for quite awhile. If we had one of the St. Mungo's surgeons here, we could have them do their work and then I could finish. I'm a nurse, not a surgeon, unfortunately."

Harry put a comforting hand on the aging nurse's shoulder.

"Do what you can, Poppy. Whatever happens know that you did everything you could."

"Thanks, Harry." she said.

That had been two hours ago. Harry hadn't been able to convince himself to leave her room yet. During this time, the irony of this whole situation hadn't escaped Harry. Here he was in the hospital room of the woman who had tried to turn in Dumbledore's Army, hoping above all hopes that she survived. _Maybe this is a sign of the time more than anything else, _Harry thought to himself.

Suddenly, he saw movement out of the corner of his eyes and moved to grip his wand before he saw who it was.

"You don't need to worry about me, Potter." Snape said snidely as he took a seat next to Harry and put his head in his hands. Harry had never seen Snape like this before.

"Excuse me, Severus, but is there something you want to talk about?" Harry asked, completely unsure of why he was asking.

Snape sat there, head in hands, for a few more moments before he raised his head and looked directly into Harry's eyes.

"I loved your mother more than my own life." he said simply.

Having seen Snape's memories nearly a decade ago, Harry knew this. However, he had not heard Snape say anything about this since his resurrection.

"I know." was all Harry could muster.

"Ever since I've returned, I've found myself wondering what I could have done to help her."

"Besides not becoming a Death Eater." Harry replied wryly.

"Obviously, Potter. Even then, your father wouldn't have allowed me anywhere near you or her."

"That probably had to do with the fact that you called my mother a Mudblood and you hung out with Death Eaters all day."

"Maybe."

Then suddenly, for a reason that was not apparent to Harry, he snapped.

"Maybe? MAYBE? You just told me you loved my mother more than your life! Maybe you feel that way now, now that you know she's dead and gone. But, I distinctly remember that memory in your Pensieve, you ignoring everything you just said and calling her the most despicable word you could think of!"

Finally, he was able to get a rise out of Severus Snape. For years, Harry had held back saying what he felt to Snape because he had been his professor. Now that no authority was held over him, they both able to finally hash this out.

"Potter, do you know why that particular memory was in my Pensieve? I keep it in there as a reminder of what a truly despicable person I am! I know that I destroyed any chance I had with your mother that day! You thought that I had that in there to relive the bullying that your arrogant father gave me? You truly are your father's son, Potter. You think you know everything and yet you still fail to see what lies right in front of your face."

The mention of his father put Harry over the edge. Poppy had come running into the room. However, instead of stopping them like she normally would have, she let them go. Not only would she probably have done more damage to herself or them if she had stopped them, she knew that she was dealing two of the most gifted wizards of their time. No good would come from getting in their way.

"My arrogant father gave his life to protect my mother and I! When Voldemort came to kill me, he did what he had to. He knew there was no way he could have won but he went anyway. My mother stood in front of me, begging him to spare me. They gave their lives so that I would live! You wouldn't even stand up to him, let alone give your life for her! You truly were a coward, through and through!"

"I was a coward, Harry Potter? I, who spend years in the clutches of Lord Voldemort but still managed to act as a spy for Dumbleodre, am a coward?"

"Yes! All those years a spy doesn't make up for the inaction in the death of my parents! You had the opportunity to stop him or at least try! Die trying! You should have died to protect them! I would die for anyone here in an instant to ensure they had a good life. But you? You had the opportunity to do anything! You could have told them he was coming, you could have moved them, you could have given them time to escape, ANYTHING! Instead, you sat back and watched in fear as your Master destroyed my family!"

At this point, Harry and Snape had both migrated to just outside of the hospital room and their raised voices had pulled nearly everyone in the camp outside to watch the spectacle before them.

"What could I have done, Potter? At least this way, I was able to help them after their death!"

"My father's death means nothing to you, Snape. Don't pretend to care about whether or not he lived or die, you selfish bastard. I remember seeing your memories. No concern for me or my father! You only wanted to protect us when it became clear that she would not come without us."

"Of course your father's death means nothing to me! He took away the one good thing in my life! I loved Lily more than anything and it was taken from me!"

"It wasn't taken from you! You gave it away! You chose Lord Voldemort over her and she paid the price for it, you cowardly piece of shit!"

"That's enough!"

Suddenly, Snape drew his wand and fired at Harry. Harry instantly withdrew his own wand and blocked Snape's assault and then returned his own. Harry couldn't remember fighting as hard as he was. While Harry did value Snape as an ally, he resented the fact that he could have saved his family and did nothing.

_"Avada Kedavra!" _Snape screamed, fury filling his eyes.

Harry sidestepped the green jet and returned with his own.

_"Crucio!"_

Unlike the last time they dueled where Harry couldn't hit Snape, he dropped him with the red light. Instantly, Snape began to writhe on the ground in pain. Harry pressed the curse for a couple moments before he heard a voice scream over the crowd.

"Harry!" he heard Ginny's voice ring out.

Instantly, Harry let up and allowed his senses to return to him. However, Snape didn't appear to have the same decency. Just as he stood, he turned and leveled his wand, silently launching a spell that Harry recognized as the Sectumsempra curse, Snape's speciality.

Harry blocked that blast and for the next few minutes, the pair traded powerful blows. Red and white blasts shot from everywhere as the two talented duelers dueled in a heated silence. Finally, Harry struck.

_"Expluso!"_

The white curse hit Snape just above his kneecap, causing his leg to snap back and the bones in his knee and lower leg to break. Harry raised his wand again.

_"Accio wand!"_

Instantly, Snape's wand flew out of his hand and into Harry's. Harry slow approached the fallen Potions master and kneeled down before him, leaning in to whisper in his ear.

"You failed to save my mother, you failed to save my father, you treated me like hell for years, and I still allow you in this camp. Remember Snape, you are here because I say that you are here. How does it feel to know that the son of your _great love_ and your worst enemy controls your fate? You may have loved my mother, but you loved yourself and power more."

With that, Harry stood and turned to look at Poppy.

"You can give him Skel-Gro, but no pain medicine. I want him to feel everything." Harry said, hatred dripping out of every word.

* * *

><p>Nearly an hour later, no one had entered Harry's room for fear that he would turn their legs inside out as well. Finally, Xavier decided that he would brave it and entered. Harry was laying on his bed, staring at the ceiling.<p>

"Do you feel better?" Xavier asked him.

"Absolutely not. I did to him what I've wanted to do for years and it just made me feel worse."

"Good. Now at least we know that Harry Potter is still human like the rest of us." Xavier replied.

"How is everyone else?"

"Do you remember what your second year was like? When everyone thought you were the Heir of Slytherin?"

"Of course. The only reason I survived it was Fred and George making everyone look like jackasses."

"Well, I'll put it this way. I haven't seen faces like the ones I'm seeing out there since then."

Harry sat up, rubbing his eyes, before he replied.

"Great. So everyone thinks I'm going to go bananas on them?"

"Well you did just have a rather public and explosive feud with Severus Snape where you proceded to torture him and break his leg, which you followed by ordering that he got no pain medication and then running to your room. It's not insane to think that you might be a little high strung right now."

"I suppose I should go out and tell everyone I'm not going to lose my mind."

Xavier actually smiled before he replied.

"Only if you're telling the truth."

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes later, Harry finally came out of his room and instantly called everyone for a meeting. Snape was invited and managed to attend after being given his pain medication. Once everyone was settled in, Harry set about fixing what he had caused.<p>

"I would like to apologize for what you saw earlier. I still have some issues with Severus that I haven't gotten completely out of my system yet and I will continue to talk with him in private to get these fixed."

Harry looked around and saw that no one seemed particularly convinced. Even Ginny refused to completely meet his eyes.

"I know things got out of hand earlier. It won't happen again. Do you remember what happened the last time you thought I was going crazy?"

"Which time?" George asked loudly.

Instantly, bursts of laughter seared through the crowd and any tension that remained was gone.

"Everytime. I promise that I'm not going mental." Harry said, intentionally choosing Ron's choice word.

"Fine." Percy said shortly. It was clear that he still remembered Harry's fifth year well and that some of the things that Percy had thought about Harry hadn't completely disappeared since then.

Suddenly, Hermione stood up and addressed the crowd.

"I guess there's no better time than now to tell you that we accomplished something yesterday. Apparently after our assault on Lord Voldemort, there were at least six revolts across Europe as freedom fighters sought to reclaim their governments. Members of the Greek Ministry were able to defeat those who controlled their Ministry and retake control. They've already promised increased support to us here where the fighting is the worst."

Harry noticed an instant lift in the mood as Hermione spoke. It appeared that to most this was the first good news they had heard since the castle had fallen months ago. Unfortunately, all good things (no matter how brief) must come to an end. Not a moment after Hermione had finished speaking, Charlie Weasley came sprinting back into the room.

"Harry, I've just received an owl from a dragon trainer in Ethiopia. Apparently, a group of Death Eaters, on orders from Rich Mitchell, are attacking."

**_BANG!_**

**__**Harry hit the floor as quickly as he could as a large explosion from somewhere outside the largest stone cabin. Once on the floor, Harry slowly crawled towards the door where he was able to take just the smallest look outside before a large Exploding Curse brushed passed his head.

"Well, he's giving orders but he's sure as hell not there to see him through." Harry said smartly.

"What?" Hermione asked in confusion.

Harry turned to Xavier.

"A whole battalion of Death Eaters are outside. Your brother is in charge."


	7. The Circle of Insanity

**01/01/07**

**1:30 PM**

For fifteen minutes, a barrage of explosive curses had been colliding against the sides of the Central Command building. Built stronger than all of the rest of the cabins and protected by a large number of enhancing charms, it wasn't going to come down anytime soon. That didn't stop Rich and his men from trying.

"STOP!"

Three seconds later, following one final explosion, silence fell upon the grounds. Xavier could hear footsteps moving quickly outside and he knew that Rich was getting ready to ramp up his attack. Thankfully, he didn't realize just how fortified the building was that he was attacking. The walls were twice as thick and twice as enchanted as those around them. Also, there was only one entrance, a set of double doors in the front that opened into a large room, surrounded by dorm rooms that had windows only large enough for a small child to fit through. Plus, those windows were nearly nine feet off the ground. Just getting into those windows would be more work than necessary and nearly suicidal if you were caught.

All the room also featured split doors. Currently, all of the bottoms were closed with the tops swung open. In this formation, they had created a crux of fire. If anyone dared to try and enter the room, they would walked into one of the best ambushes possible. Almost every room had three or four people in it, wands ready and facing the center of the room.

Inside Xavier's room was Charlie, Severus, and Hagrid. With the half-giant in the small room, it was a tight fit but they made it work. Xavier could see Hermione and Harry both in the room exactly across from them, waiting for anyone to try and enter.

"If they come in, we don't wait. Shoot to kill." Harry said softly as everyone around the room nodded.

"Is everyone accounted for?" Xavier asked, looking around the room.

"Poppy and Marietta were in the hospital wing in the far cabin. I'm not sure if I've heard that one explode yet." Luna Lovegood replied from the room next door.

"Great." Xavier heard Harry growl from across the room.

"Do we try and go get them?" Xavier asked Harry and Hermione across the way.

"No." Hermione shook her head sadly.

"We can't afford to. We could lose them and anyone else we send to try and save them. Hopefully, Poppy is smart enough to keep her head down and stay quiet."

Xavier cursed but he also agreed with Harry. They simply couldn't risk sending anyone to go get them. If they were seen, they were sure to be killed. There was no way they could get them.

"You know what they're doing? They're starving us out. They know that we can't survive in here forever without food." Percy said, already mildly in a panic.

Xavier was getting ready to reply harshly when he heard a voice call out from outside.

"You have a choice, dear brother!"

Obviously, there could be no mistaking the voice of his brother. He knew that he needed to play his game. The longer he could keep Rich talking, the more sure he was that he could come up with a plan to get everyone out safely. But first, he had a game to play of his own.

"Harry," Xavier whispered. "Can you write down the address to Grimmauld Place?"

"Of course, why?" Harry asked.

"Write it down and give it to Winky. Then, she can start taking people there while I talk with Rich. Hopefully, I can spare you guys enough time to get you out safely."

"You are not sacrificing yourself!" Hermione screamed at him.

"I'm not. I'm just trying to create a diversion to get you guys out quicker. I'll be fine, 'Mione." Xavier replied to her.

"Fine." Hermione replied but she was not convinced.

Xavier stood up and opened the lower door to enter the center of the room. Once there, he turned to everyone.

"Wait until I get outside and get him talking. Then, call for Winky. She should be at my apartment. At least, that's where I told her to go after we got back yesterday. Tell her that she needs to Apparate as quiet as she ever has before. I can give you guys five minutes and then I doubt my brother will continue to play along."

With that, Xavier gave one last look at Harry and Hermione and then spoke up.

"I'm coming out, brother. Call your men away from the building." Xavier called out.

"And why would I do that?" Rich mocked.

"If you don't, I'll call in my foreign friends hiding in the woods. They outnumber you greatly." Xavier lied, knowing that more than likely most of the foreign soldier were dead. The foreign soldiers didn't care about the meetings we were having. They sent their leaders to represent them and then their leaders gave them commands. Sometimes, that was nice. It prevented foreign interest from overriding the concerns of what was going on here. Others, like now when they were all likely wounded or worse, it was not so advantageous.

"You're bluffing!" Rich yelled.

"Would you like to test me?"

For a moment, Xavier thought that Rich was going to attack. Then, he heard footsteps falling away from the building and Xavier made his way outside.

"I have my wand in my pocket! It's all I carry." Xavier said as he stepped outside.

As he moved outside, he saw exactly what he expected. All of the cabins other than the one that housed the Medical Wing were destroyed. There were some moans and groans from some members of the foreign armies that had survived, but largely, there were simply a lot of dead bodies lying around. Xavier approached his brother with his hands held high, slowly that he had no intention of attacking.

"Put your hands down, brother. You are outnumbered. I know you. You are an oddsmaker. You would not attack me because you know that you could not escape with your life."

Xavier regrettably knew that his mad brother was right. He could not justifying killing him if he knew that there was no way out for himself. It wasn't that he cared for his own life that much. It was that everything Xavier did was based on numbers and Xavier was a number that he knew Harry needed.

Xavier slowly lowered his arms and continued to approach Rich. What Xavier saw shocked him, Rich looked healthier than he had looked in ages. The scars that had constantly been forming on his brother's face every time he saw him were fading and there was a life and energy in his eyes that he had not seen in years.

"You look good." Xavier said simply.

"Thanks. I wish I could say the same about you, but unfortunately living on low rations and dealing with the stress of fighting Merlin and the Dark Lord haven't been good to you."

"They will be. Now, why am I out here?"

Rich snickered at the brashness of his reply. Xavier knew that he was playing with fire but he didn't care. He wanted to know why his brother hadn't simply slaughtered them all.

"I have a deal for you."

"I'm listening." Xavier said.

"Retrieve your injured. Take them to the medical wing. Fix them up."

"What's the catch?"

"You must come with us." Rich said, a triumphant smile on his face. Xavier had to restrain himself from punching his twin directly in the face. However, he restrained himself when he heard the faintest popping noise behind him, signaling that his friends were getting out. He just needed to talk more.

"OK. That's not acceptable. What's your other offer?"

"We will wait out here, day and night, until you come out." Rich said roughly. "We will wait until you starve and die. Then, when you are at your weakest, we will attack and crush you."

"That's doubtful." Xavier replied. "We can get food and water to us anytime we want. We could live in there for years."

"How? Using her?" Rich replied as he pointed to the dead elf laying next to him. It was Winky. Suddenly, Xavier was filled with horror as he turned and raced back to the cabin. As he entered he saw all of his friends laying face down in the center room with Death Eaters surrounding them, wands drawn.

He turned back in fear and rage and approached his brother.

"Did you think that you could stop us from getting in there? Your Anti-Apparation shield was poorly planned and even poorly cast. I took it down an hour before we attacked."

Rage burned through Xavier like a raging inferno. He could actually feel the heat radiating off of him.

"Angry, dear brother? I imagine you would be. You always imagined yourself to be one step ahead of me. Now, I am three ahead of you. Here is the deal: you come with us, we leave. You don't, they die. Take it or leave it."

Xavier's mind was racing. He knew that he couldn't sacrifice his friends but he absolutely did not want to go with them. Suddenly, inspiration struck him.

"No. What about this? You and I duel. To the death. Whoever wins stays, whoever loses goes. One of us dies, everyone else survives to fight another day."

Rich seemed to be thinking about it. Xavier certainly hoped he was. It was the only way that he could think of that everyone on his side lived.

"So, we duel. If I win, all of your friends have to leave and never come back here. But, if you win, my Death Eaters must leave."

"Yes." Xavier agreed heartily. "Once one of us dies, no one else does. The other side simply packs up and leaves. We will make the Unbreakable Vow to ensure that no one else dies."

"The Unbreakable Vow? If you say so." Rich said. "We shouldn't do it though. We should get our second to do it. That way, whoever survives can't kill the others."

"Harry!" Xavier called.

"Let him go!" Rich yelled, knowing that his men would try and kill the man if he so much as flinched.

Instantly, Harry came running out. Xavier quickly filled him in.

"You're doing what?" Harry asked.

"It's the only way. This way, I know that you will survive and you can keep fighting."

"You are nuts."

"You have to make the Vow." Xavier replied.

"I'll do it." Harry said lowly.

Harry stepped forward as did Xavier. Rich stepped forward and so did Warrington, a former Slytherin.

"We will both do it." Rich said firmly.

"I will bond." Harry replied.

Quickly, Xavier and Rich stepped forward and grasped hands. Harry placed his wand over the hands and began.

"Rich and Xavier Mitchell, do you swear to fight a duel to the death with the understanding that any withdrawal and forfeit with result in your death?"

"I do." the Mitchell replied in unison.

Instantly, ropes of light wrapped themselves around the hands of the twins, burning their flesh. Each grimaced as the Vow was pressed into their hands. Finally, when the lights disappeared, the twins released each others' hands and turned to the other two.

"I will bond this one." Rich said sharply.

Again, Harry and Warrington stepped forward and clasped hands.

"Christopher Warrington and Harry Potter, do you swear that upon the results of this duel, the losing side's alliance will leave this place and not return until the war is over and that return will result in your death?"

"I do."

"Do you swear that any attack or assault on the other side before, during, or after this duel will result in the death of you and your alliance?"

"I do."

"Do you swear that any interference from either side during the duel will result in the death of you and your alliance?"

Again, the lights burned and disappeared. Finally, the Vows were in place. Two brothers would duel, one would survive.

"I'll give you ten minutes." Rich said to his brother.

"Release my people." Xavier commanded.

"As you wish, but if they interfere..."

"I know."

* * *

><p>Ten minutes later, everyone stood outside. The survivors of Hogwarts stood towards the lake while the Death Eaters and Crescent Moon stood by the forrest. Two identical twins stood in the middle, wands drawn. Xavier couldn't believe that it had finally come to this. He had hoped above hope that his brother could be saved, that he could survive the war and be happy again someday. Maybe he would...<p>

Finally, the two brothers approached each other.

"I'm sorry it had to come to this." Xavier said, tears lining his eyes.

"I'm not." Rich replied boldly. "I've waited for this day for years now."

Hearing those words, hearing the malice and hatred that lined them, hurt Xavier more than anything he had ever experienced in his life. More than losing his parents, more than killing Demelza, more than witnessing the heroic death of Ron Weasley. A part of him stood facing him, a evil caricature of who he was, stating his hatred.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

Instantly, the two turned and paced away from each other. When they finally turned, both had placed their wands in the appropriate defensive positions. Harry stepped forward.

"3, 2, 1, GO!"

_"Avada Kedavra!" _two voices screamed in unison. The two powerful jets of light struck each other in the middle, creating a massive explosion that knocked both of them off their feet. Rich made to get up but Xavier was quicker.

_"Expulso!" _

The white streak hit the Death Eater square the chest, causing bones to rip and crack and blood to spew from his brother.

Xavier realized that he had never dueled his brother in a good mental state. The first time, he had been unprepared after his brother's outburst at Hogwarts. Then, the first appearance of Merlin at the Ministry of Magic. Again, they dueled at Azkaban, where Xavier had been ill and weak from months of imprisonment and torture. Finally, during his own outburst at the Ministry, he had barely recognized himself. Xavier would have to say that this was the first time that he had been even remotely okay during a duel with his brother.

His brother tried to get back up, but couldn't. He began to spit up blood and wheezed as he tried to get up. Finally, he was able to pull himself to his feet, bloody and weak.

Xavier aimed at his brother and attacked again, pouring all of his magic into his assault.

_"Diffindo!_

Instantly, the spell went clean through his left arm, tearing it from its place and severing it from his upper arm. Rich fell to the ground, screaming in agony as blood poured profusely both from his chest and arm. Using only his wand arm and the stump at his elbow, he was able to stand again.

"Do you yield?" Xavier yelled at his brother.

"NO! You cannot kill me! I am the almighty! I cannot be defeated! I cannot be killed! I am more than human! I am a god!"

It was in this mad moment that Xavier knew that he had lost his brother for good. Xavier raised his wand to kill his brother, to silently finish him off.

"It was I who killed our parents! It was I would cast the curse that killed Robins! I who tipped the Dark Lord that you were in Diagon Alley that led to the death of the blood traitor!"

Suddenly, all of the pent-up anger that Xavier had ever had exploded out of him.

"Enough! _Confringo!"_

In what appeared to be slow motion, a blast of light blue rushed out of Xavier's wand and towards his insane foe. Xavier watched as the rush hit his brother. Instantly, a massive, bloody explosion rocked the grounds. Body parts, limbs, blood, guts, and other various body parts exploded away from where Rich Mitchell had stood. After the explosion faded away, all that remained was part of his brother's head and a bloody mess.

For a few moments, Xavier didn't know what to do. Should he celebrate the death of his brother? Should he cry and mourn him? What should he do? Suddenly, the emotion of what he had done, what it had taken for him to do this, came over him. He slowly sank to the ground, tears running down his face. No one approached him, fearful of him in this state. Rich, always mischievous, powerful, and snide, but still his brother. Finally, all of his emotion truly bubbled to the surface as he let out a fiery roar.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! NOOOOOOOOOOO!" he screamed as he released the horror and shamed that he felt. He lifted his wand and aimed it at the remains of his brother.

_"Incendio!"_

Quickly, the remains of Rich Mitchell burned to a crisp. Xavier watched as they slowly turned to ash, returning his brother to the earth he so desperately wished to control. Finally, he felt arms around him. Knowing their identity, he slowly let himself fall into Hermione's arms and sob. He watched as the Death Eaters and Crescent Moon were forced out by Harry.

"We're safe, Xavier. They cannot come here. Not Voldemort, not Merlin. You saved us all." Hermione whispered into his ear.

"Yes, I saved you all."

"You didn't save yourself?" Hermione asked in confusion.

Xavier didn't answer. He just sobbed into her arms.

* * *

><p>For the next week, no one saw the former Headmaster. Rumors were abound that he was sick, that he was dying, that there had been some kind of both between him and his brother and that his brother's death was causing him a slow miserable agony. All anyone knew is that Harry and Hermione were going into his room a few times a day, trying to talk to him and get him to eat something.<p>

Finally, one week later, he spoke to Harry.

"How are you doing?" Harry asked him blandly. After a week of trying, Harry had run out of things to say.

"I appreciate the effort, Potter. I really do. But, you can't help me right now. No one can."

"Why do you say that?" Harry asked. "Hermione can't help you?"

"No."

"Why not?" Harry asked.

Finally, after a week of laying in bed, Xavier sat up.

"She told me something moments after I did it. Moments after it happened."

"What did she say?"

Xavier took a deep breath before he replied.

"You saved us all."

"Was she wrong? Why was that such a bad thing to say?" Harry asked in confusion.

"Because of what I did to save you. I did the one thing that I told myself that I would never do. I still thought that I could save him. I still thought that someday, just maybe, I could bring the brother I loved back. Was he always a bully? Mostly. But, did he love my family? I thought so. But what I saw out there was my worst nightmare. It was someone I didn't recognize. But most of all, I saw what I could do. My brother and I are two halves of the same person. I don't think it would be out of the question to think that I could become him one day."

"But what did that have to do with what she said? If I understand you, what she said really upset you. Why?"

"She said that I saved US all. Myself included."

Harry seemed lost. He had, hadn't he?

"Didn't you?" Harry asked.

"No. Didn't you see? I killed myself. I killed myself to save you."


	8. Colors of Passion

**01/08/07**

**10:27 PM**

"Xavier?"

She didn't expect a reply and she didn't get one. Almost a week had gone by and he hadn't said anything to anyone except Harry nearly six hours ago. Harry had simply said that he had talked but hadn't shared what he had said what he had said. However, Harry's mood had suggested that it hadn't been good. So, she had waited a couple hours before finally deciding to try to talk to him again.

Suddenly, a voice broke into her thoughts.

"Go away, 'Mione." Xavier's voice called out roughly. Hermione could tell based on the coarse nature of his voice that he had been crying.

"Xavier, I'm just here for you. We don't have to talk if you don't want to." she said softly.

"Good." Xavier replied harshly before he rolled back over and faced the wall again.

Hermione couldn't help but look at the man in front of her and think of all the terrible things that had happened recently. Despite all the horrible things that had happened to Hermione and Harry since the war started, Xavier may have been the one who had lost the most. She thought about what it had to have been like to watch his brother descend into madness, first killing his Squib parents and then joining Lord Voldemort's Death Eater as one of his head lieutenants, directly opposing him. Since the war had started, everything that Rich had done had brought pain and suffering to his brother. Xavier had fought as hard as he could do save his brother to no avail.

One of the things that Hermione loved and hated about Xavier was his ability to control his emotions. Very rarely did you know what he was feeling or what he was thinking. That was great for a military leader. He was able to lead and command without anyone knowing the conflict that almost always lies within him. However, it also made him very difficult to be in a relationship with. It wasn't often that Xavier would share anything he was feeling and even rarer when he would actually show it. Fortunately, she could tell by the warmth that he radiated whenever he smiled at her that he loved her. That much she knew. However, Hermione was terrified that the effects of this war would cause that smile to disappear indefinitely.

They had been at war for a year now. In that year, she had seen the man in front of her lose control only three times. The first when his brother had hit Demelza with a particularly powerful Cruciatus Curse, rendering her insane. The second had been when a group of Death Eaters, which Rich was certainly a part of, had kidnapped a group of NOA and tortured them. This group included Padma Patil, someone who had been a good friend of Xavier's when they were at school, who had almost assured had been raped during the night. Finally, last week, when he had finally been forced to kill his brother in order to save the lives of everyone else in the camp. Xavier had sacrificed everything that he thought he could save in order to save her and everyone else.

Finally, she wondered if it had all been too much for him. However, she was hopeful that eventually he would come back to them.

"What do I do now?"

Hermione had been so shocked to hear him speak that she had nearly fallen off the chair that she had placed next to their bed.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, tears forming in her eyes.

"I fought for so long, Hermione. I did everything I could to bring Rich back. I held back every time we met. I was decidedly un-lethal anytime I knew he was in the area. In the end, I had to choose. I was forced to make a decision between you and Harry and Ginny and everyone else and the only blood relative that I had."

"Don't think about it that way." Hermione said, still talking to Xavier's back. "You didn't choose between us and him."

Finally, Xavier rolled over. His eyes were red with anger and tears and a thick black layer of hair lay messily on his face. While he almost always had a small beard, it was unsettling to see him unkempt like this. In the past, he had always been careful to mind his appearance in public. He knew that being the figure he was, he needed to keep a high profile. Now, he looked messy and rugged. It didn't fit him.

"How did I not choose?" Xavier asked, a subtle rage lining his voice.

"I didn't say that you didn't have a choice to make. Just that you didn't make the one you thought you made. You didn't choose between us and him. You chose between us and yourself."

Instantly, the look on Xavier's face softened. He sputtered for a few moments before he fell silent.

"You were willing to give yourself up to save us. I know that Harry has already said to everyone else how he can't thank you enough for what you did. You made the ultimate sacrifice. You weighed all the options and decided that you were willing to give your life to save us. You knew that saving us may mean killing your brother. But, I think that in the end, you did what was necessary. You would have done the same with anyone else."

Finally, Xavier seemed to have reached the edge. He fell forward and into Hermione's lap, sobbing as he did.

"I just wanted to bring him home. All I wanted was for him to give up and come with me. But, he was so goddamn stubborn. He wouldn't quit just like I wouldn't quit. He did exactly what I would have done in his shoes."

"What you did do." Hermione corrected him.

"Excuse me?"

"You did just that. You didn't give up. Instead, you fought to the end. The two of you were two equal and opposite forces. In the end, only one of you was going to come out of this and I think you knew that. You dreamed that he could be saved but I believe that you knew he wasn't going to compromise."

Xavier's sobs continued on for a few moments before they finally subsided. He looked up at Hermione. She had never seen anything so raw and fragile in her entire life. Not George when Fred had been killed and not even Harry when Ron had been murdered. Suddenly, Xavier's eyes lit up. The fire that had always been in his eyes returned with a vengeance.

"Hermione, I love you." Xavier said, smiling for the first time in a week. She saw that warmth return and instantly, her heart melted. He was back.

"I love you, Xavier." Hermione said softly.

Suddenly, Hermione saw Xavier reach down into his robes and pull out a box. In between chocking back sobs, he opened it. Inside was a silver ring with a lone diamond in it. Just when Hermione thought that the ring was a normal Muggle diamond, it turned a deep purple before switching to a burning orange. Then, the silver glowed a bright purple with the orange.

"Whatever color the band is, that's me. Darker colors, like purple, brown, and black, are negative emotions. Lighter colors, yellow, green, white, positive. The diamond is you. There are three colors of passion; red is anger, orange is purpose, and blue is peace. Legend says that if there is a time when both a color of passion, your magical power should grow for one spell."

Hermione couldn't remember the last time she was this speechless. She looked at the gorgeous ring with tears in her eyes.

"Wh...Wh-Where did you get this?" Hermione stuttered.

"It was my mother's." Xavier said with what Hermione could tell was great difficulty. "She would have wanted someone like you to have it."

"I-I-I don't know what to say."

Xavier quickly fell over her lap and down onto one knee, holding the ring out in front of him.

"Just say yes, 'Mione. I love you more than I could ever imagine. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

She couldn't breathe. Suddenly, she was transported back down to the Vault. All she could hear was Ron's voice in her head.

_Be with him. Be with him. Be with him. Be with him. Be with him. Be with him. Be with him._

_Just love him back. Just love him back. Just love him back. Just love him back. Just love him back._

Then, in a moment, as if she could see through the Gate again, just for a moment, she saw him.

_Do it, Hermione._

"Yes..Yes!...YES!" Hermione shouted.

Xavier pulled the pair of them to their feet and gently put the ring on her finger. For a moment, it was too large. Then, it suddenly shrank down to fit her finger perfectly.

"I love you!" Hermione said through her sobs.

"'Mione, you are my life." Xavier replied before he pulled her in to kiss him.

While the two of them had spent the night together many times before, they would certainly never forget this time.

* * *

><p><strong>0110/07**

**12:01 PM**

Two days later, Harry, Xavier, Hermione and the remaining survivors of Hogwarts sat in the only remaining building, the Central Command building. The other buildings would be rebuilt in time. However, now was not that time. After hearing about the engagement of Hermione and Xavier, Harry thought that now was the best time to get moving on actually defeating Voldemort.

"Thanks to everyone for coming today." Harry started. "This is going to be a big day for us. As of one year ago, the Ministry of Magic has been defunct. It was unrightfully taken from us by Lord Voldemort, Merlin, and their cronies. Now, we are going to take it back. But first, we have some things to discuss. After a long of talk over the last few days, we have decided to send all of the foreign armies home. Most of the countries where they come from are also under Lord Voldemort's rule and should be at home doing what they can for their own countries. They will be leaving tonight and will not return until this war is over. Katarine, Pierre, and Alek: we thank you for your assistance and wish you good luck back home."

A round of hearty applause was held for those who had come from foreign lands to help them. Harry was sad to see them go but he knew that they were doing the right thing. This was no longer their fight, at least not here.

"Second, the New Order Army has officially been restored under a new name." Harry said strongly. As he spoke, Hermione and Xavier stepped forward. Once all three of them stood in front of the crowd, Hermione spoke.

"By the power vested in me by the last convened Wizengamot, I, Hermione Jean Granger, restore the Ministry of Magic to power here. Will any remaining members of the Wizengamot please stand?"

Harry and Xavier already stood but Arthur Weasley, Percy Weasley, Susan Bones, and Draco Malfoy stood.

"The six of you will be joined by three elected officials to create the new Emergency Executive Council. Under Wizarding Law Article IV, Clause 6 and Lines 6-8, the Minister of Magic holds right to utilize emergency powers if less than one third of the Wizengamot remains at any one point. As of this point, we have only been able to identify two additional Wizengamot members living within the country: Cornelius Fudge, honorary member and Amos Diggory, currently living under an alias in London. At any point, these two members will be allowed to join this Executive Council."

"How is this legal?" Ernie MacMillan asked harshly.

"Like she said, MacMillan," Harry started. "if the Wizengamot is decimated to the point where less than one third of its population, the Minister of Magic, Hermione, has the right to take control of the government. All Hermione is doing is reassembling the government to work now. There is something else that she hasn't mentioned."

"You are right. I must appoint three people to watch over me. If at any point all three of them agree that I've gone too far, they can collectively veto my actions. I would like to name Ginny Weasley, Ernie MacMillan, and Justin Finch-Fletchey to these positions. Do you accept?"

All three of them nodded slowly before standing and coming to the front of the room. Ernie seemed much happier than a few minutes ago as he approached the front of the room. Finally, the Veto Council and the Executive Council stood up at the front of the room with Hermione. Harry watched as she looked around, pleased with what she saw. Then, she turned to the room and spoke up again.

"I officially convene this, the new Ministry of Magic, at 12:06 PM on January 10th, 2007." Hermione announced.

Applause and cheers rang out as the room exploded. Everyone wanted to get to the front of the room to congratulate Hermione and the rest of the Council for what they had done. For the next hour, people hung around the central command room before eventually dispersing. For the time being, everyone was living in the Command building with bunks having been installed in every room. While it certainly left privacy lacking, everyone had a place to stay and that's all anyone could ask for right now.

As everyone left, Hermione, Xavier, and Harry toasted to themselves in the corner, proud that they had been able to recreate the Ministry. They were in the midst of their celebration when Denis Creevey, the resident information hound, approached them.

"I have some shocking news for you." he said to them.

"What is it?" Hermione asked him. Harry smiled as he heard a return to the official voice that Hermione had often used when she was acting as Minister. Harry feared that they were going to hear that voice a lot more in the future.

"As always, my people know some people who talk to Death Eaters every once in a while." Denis replied with a snarky smile.

"What are they saying?" Harry replied, nothing bothering with any formalities.

"Voldemort took off last night. Apparently, a couple of his new Death Eaters when to report to him this morning and he was gone."

Harry looked at both Hermione and Xavier in surprise. Voldemort hadn't left Malfoy Manor in months. This had to be big.

"Why?" Harry pressed.

"Apparently, he had been going on and on about going to Norway. Merlin is pissed."

"Really?"

"Yeah. They don't get along too way evidentially. I've heard a lot of things where they don't agree on a whole lot other than Muggles suck."

"That's not a surprise. Too much ego for their own good." Xavier said softly.

"Yeah. He's got to be looking for Thor's castle." Hermione added.

"Well, then maybe we should too." Harry replied. "We should plan to get a group to go to Norway soon."

"That's a good idea." said Hermione. "Get at least five or six."

"Thanks, Minister" Harry said snidely with a grin.

"Shut it, Harry."


	9. Sacked

**01.14.07**

**6:45 PM**

"We need to talk."

Harry hadn't wanted to have this conversation. Not now and not before he left. However, if he knew anything, he knew that denying Ginny Weasley was one of the most dangerous things in the world.

"About what, Gin?"

"Don't you 'Gin' me, Harry Potter!" Ginny scolded. "You've been avoiding me for the last four days. You wake up early and go to bed late. You eat before or after everyone else does. What are you doing?"

Harry sighed deeply before turning around from his desk in the Central Command office to face his fiancée.

"I'm taking a group of people to Norway to search for Thor's castle. Using the information found in some of the files that we pulled from the Vault, we think we have a general idea of where it is. Xavier and I are taking George, Severus, and Angelina with us on our search."

Harry could see the fury rising within her. He knew that this was going to happen but he also knew that he couldn't take her.

"What did you think I would say? Did you think that under any circumstances I would be okay with that?"

"No. But this isn't about you, Ginny." Harry replied strongly.

Finally, Harry knew that he had gone too far. Ginny stepped forward, getting right into Harry's face, and screaming.

"Excuse me? What do you mean this isn't about me?" she yelled.

"You have a job to do here." Harry replied softly, not letting her pull him into a rage. "You are on the Veto Council. You can't just walk away from that."

"That's bullshit, Harry, and you know it. Hermione's not going to do anything that we wouldn't agree with. I'm coming with you." Ginny replied.

Harry knew that what he was about to say could potentially kill him but he needed to.

"No, you aren't."

For all the times that Ginny had been upset and screamed, it was most terrifying when she stopped screaming and got incredibly quiet.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I must have had something in my ear. Did I just hear you tell me that I'm not going?"

Harry took a deep breath before diving off the deep end.

"Yesterday, Hermione named me the Head of the Military. I am in charge of _any _mission that leaves these grounds, including and especially this one. You are not coming, Ginny. I'm sorry and I know that's going to piss you off but I don't care. You are needed here. You're staying."

Ginny's breathing was incredibly deep and slow as she stared at the floor. He knew that she was either considering leaving or attacking him. It wasn't going to be anywhere in the middle. But, he also knew that there was another option she was considering that he could not allow.

"I swear on my parent's grave that if you follow us the moment we get back, I will lock you in your room until the war is over. That's not a joke." Harry reiterated.

Suddenly, Harry's face burned as Ginny slapped him across the face.

"Who do you think you are? You may be the great Harry Potter to everyone else out there, but you don't get to play that card with me!"

"Did I take you on a single of my missions as an Auror?" Harry replied calmly. "When I was out chasing Death Eaters or stopping that miniature vampire invasion, did you come with me?"

Ginny instantly began to examine a spot just in front of her on the floor.

"No."

"Did I play in all of your matches?"

"No." Ginny muttered, still doing everything she could to avoid eye contact.

"Why?"

"Because it was my job."

Finally, Harry stepped forward and put his arms around Ginny, pulling her in tight.

"This is my job, Gin. This isn't Hogwarts anymore. You have a job here to do and I have a job out there. I know that it isn't easy but this is what needs to be done."

Tears began to run down Ginny's face as she nodded softly.

"I love you, Ginny. We'll be gone a week or two and then we'll be right back. We're not going to fight Voldemort or something like that. We're just looking around for the castle, looking for information, that kind of stuff. No danger."

"You promise?" Ginny said softly, finally looking up at him.

"Promise." Harry replied warmly.

* * *

><p><strong>01.15.07<strong>

**8:55 AM**

The next morning, Harry and his traveling group were all set to go. They had spent the evening planning and researching some of the locations that Thor was rumored to have been around. They would simply travel from town to town and ask around. They knew that it was a mildly silly plan but since Thor's castle was assumed to be unplottable, it was the best they had.

"Now, remember you need to stop just before you cross the North Sea. It's going to be a cold two hours over the sea anyway you shake it so get to Aberdeen and stay the night." Hermione informed.

"We know, Hermione." Harry said with a smile. "I know someone in Aberdeen. We're staying there. Then, we fly and go to Oslo and start searching. Now, calm down."

"Don't tell me to calm down, Harry." Hermione scolded. "I still don't like that you're leaving."

"Hermione, it was your idea." Harry replied casually.

"That doesn't change the fact that I'm nervous about this whole thing."

"Yeah, because you're the person going to Norway, chasing Lord Voldemort down." Xavier replied softly, thinking he had spoken soft enough so that Hermione had heard him. He was wrong.

"Xavier, if you want to leave here with both your hands, I suggest you shut up."

"Got it, Hermione."

Finally, Harry decided that he was tired of sitting there, waiting for everyone to say their goodbyes. He walked over to the angry redhead who stood away from the group, tears streaming down her face.

"Don't go." she said softly as he pulled her in tight.

"We need to do this and Xavier and I are the best to lead it." Harry replied in her ear.

"I know."

"I love you, Ginny." Harry whispered.

"I love you."

Finally, after a few more moments of holding his love tight, he let go and made his way back to the group where Hermione had continued to impress on those that remained of his group on how important their work was. Minister of Magic or not, Harry wasn't waiting a moment longer.

"Mount up!" he screamed over her voice. Hermione gave him a sharp look before she leaned forward and kissed Xavier. Then, she approached Harry.

"Take care of him." she replied softly.

"I always do." Harry joked.

"I'm serious, Harry. I don't know what I would do if-"

"He'll be fine, Hermione. He's a good guy and he's quick on his feet. He doesn't need my help." Harry interjected.

"But you'll watch him?"

"I will protect everyone in the group."

"Harry..."

"YES!" Harry said, laughing as he yelled in frustration. "Yes, I will watch him. But he's a big boy. He'll take care of himself."

"I know." Hermione replied before she leaned and gave Harry a hug. "Take care of yourself too. I can't lose either of you."

"We'll be fine, Hermione. But we really need to go. We have to spend the next seven hours weaving in and out of the countryside so that Merlin doesn't catch us." Harry exaggerated.

"Get out of here then." Hermione said with a laugh.

"LET'S GO!" Harry yelled. Instantly, each person in his group separated from the person they had been speaking with and got in formation.

"On my mark!" Harry bellowed as he pulled his goggles over his eyes. "3, 2, 1, Mark!"

In a flash, five people tore off the ground towards the edge of England and on their way to Norway.

* * *

><p><strong>10:01 AM<strong>

After an hour, Harry circled his finger and pointed to the ground, indicating a landing spot. Within moments, the five of them had landed in a small clearing in a wood only about a half hour from the castle. Harry had intentionally been heading in several different locations in order to determine if anyone had been trailing him.

As he landed, Harry jumped off of his broom and instantly started casting some of the spells that Hermione had taught him during their hunt for the Horcruxes. Once he was done, he turned to his group.

"Anyone see a tail?" Harry asked.

All of them shook their head as they breathed deep, exhausted from the breakneck speed that Harry had been flying at.

"Hey, Harry, you mind taking it a little slower." Xavier said as he breathed deep. "Not only do you have the best broom in the world, you're also a world class flyer."

Harry smiled as he looked at his broom, the Firebolt HP. During the few months after the battle of Hogwarts, the Firebolt Corporation asked if they could create a model of Firebolt after him. It was going to be significantly faster than the original Firebolt and nearly fifty MPH faster than any other broom on the market. Harry looked around and saw George on a Nimbus 3000, Angelina was flying a Cleansweep Seventeen, Snape was still flying on the archaic Comet 260, and Xavier flew the original Firebolt, the only broom that could even come close to challenging what Harry's broom could do. It had been nearly ten years since his broom had been produced and still nothing matched it. Only fifty had been created but the price tag was so high that only twenty of them were ever sold.

"I think I can take it back a bit." Harry chuckled. "Especially since we are not away from the castle, we're going to take off a little faster. We're still going to be taking the long way to Aberdeen but we'll make it there. Hopefully, we will get there in a few hours. I would like to get there before sundown so that we can meet with our contact in the daylight. He will be less frightened if he can see us when we show up. As it is, he's still a little wary of us being there."

"Who is your contact?" Snape asked snidely. "I would like to know if we are walking into another one of your brilliantly crafted ideas."

Harry heard the sarcasm in Snape's voice but chose to ignore it.

"Someone I helped hide as part of the Auror Protection Program when I first started. We thought he was dead prior to that but he had just gone to France to hide. George will be particularly happy to see him." Harry said with a smile.

"I will?" George asked in confusion.

"Let's just say that I hope he will _settle his debt._" Harry replied cryptically.

The look on George's face was priceless as he slowly realized who Harry was referring to.

"Ludo?"

Harry's only response was a slow and deliberate nod.

"Ludo? As in Ludo Bagman?" Xavier asked to him.

"That bastard is still fucking alive! I'm going to kill him!" George replied in a frustrated rage.

"How is that snake still alive?" Snape asked.

"He escaped to France just after the Triwizard Tournament. Finally, the goblins tracked him down there. So, just after Voldemort's death, he snuck back into the country and asked for protection. I was assigned to create a new identity for him and place him in a location where we could keep an eye on him. I chose Aberdeen because it was far enough out of the way that no one would look for him there but I could go check on him. He lives in the middle of nowhere just outside of town."

"How long has he lived there?" Xavier asked him.

"About six years now. We held him in London for a while until I could get him a new identity." Harry replied. "However, that's not important. We still have a way to go and we can't just go straight there so we need to get moving."

* * *

><p><strong>5:47 PM<strong>

Nearly eight hours later, Harry and his crew landed just on the outskirts of Aberdeen. Harry suggested that since they were in a Muggle area, they needed to avoid being seen doing anything magical. So, they all transfigured their brooms into walking sticks and began the six mile hike to Bagman's house.

"Why couldn't you put the son of a bitch in the middle of town?" George asked about a half hour into the walk.

"Aberdeen has got one of the largest magical populations in Scotland, including numerous people that Ludo knew. So, I moved him out here where he could get into town but not be recognized. I also gave him enough Polyjuice Potion to last him to the next ice age."

"Great." Angelina commented. "So we won't even know what he looks like."

"I told him he needs to be inside and in his normal skin." Harry replied. "We'll see if he listened."

"Why didn't you bring him to Hogwarts after the Ministry went down?" Severus asked Harry, continuing the onslaught of questions.

"I didn't want someone to kill him." Harry said, sneaking a look at George.

"I wouldn't have killed him." George replied harshly. "I just would have beaten him within an inch of life everyday. As it is, I'm having trouble controlling the urge to punch him square in that broken nose of his when we get there."

"Hold onto that anger, George." Xavier replied. "Maybe we can use that against him."

"I had planned on it." Harry replied.

* * *

><p><strong>7:59 PM<strong>

Another two hours later, Harry finally recognized the small cottage he had put Ludo in. Harry quickly approached and withdrew his wand.

"Mr. Pennyworth?"

Instantly, the door was thrown open and in the doorway stood Ludo Bagman. The bright look that had previously inhabited in the man was gone and had been replaced by a perpetual state of terror. The glow in his eyes was gone replaced by a weary darkness that still shocked Harry every time he saw the man.

"Mr. Potter, please come in." Ludo said as he stepped away from the door, allowing his group to pass. As George passed by, he glared harshly at the fallen man, who immediately wilted under the angered look.

Instantly, Harry and his group made themselves at home, sitting down and taking over his living room.

"So, Ludo, how's life treating you?" Xavier asked with a smirk that Harry could only recognize as evil sarcasm.

"Mr. Mitchell, life is a little rough right now, as you can guess my looking around." Ludo replied, failing to hide the venom in his voice.

"Blah, blah, blah." George replied with hatred. "You deserve every bit of this, you sneaky little bastard."

"Mr. Weasley, I would like you to remember that I haven't told Merlin that you are here."

"That we know of." George interjected.

"George..." Harry shot across the room.

"Fine."

"Thank you, Harry." Ludo replied with gratitude. "I appreciate that very much.

"I never said he was wrong." Harry replied harshly. "I just don't want him to get worked up and kill you."

Instantly, Ludo shut up and took a seat on the stairs to the upper floor of the small cottage.

"So, where do we go from here?" Angelina asked Harry.

"We'll fly across the sea in the morning. From there, we'll go to Oslo and go to their Ministry. Voldemort hasn't been able to take over there and so they're still very sympathetic to our cause. They've agreed to protect us while we are there."

"Really?" George asked.

"Yeah. My opposite there is a good friend." Harry replied.

"Wonderful." Xavier said. "I was worried that we were going to have to fight our way everywhere. Although I don't know what I'm complaining about, I have been involved in a good battle in like two weeks."

Harry was laughing at Xavier's remark when suddenly Xavier's voice rang in his head.

**_"Something is wrong with Ludo."_**

_"Searching his mind?" _Harry replied in his head.

**_"Skimming it. He's been thinking about Merlin a lot. I'm not sure he was being honest with us when he said that he hadn't told him."_**

_"What would he get from telling him?"_

**_"Maybe, for starters, he wouldn't have to live in this shack anymore?"_**

_"True. When we go to bed, we'll make sure that we have a guard up all night."_

**_"I guess that's the best we can_** **_do."_**

* * *

><p><strong>01.16.07<strong>

**6:04 AM**

Through the night, one member of the group stayed awake to ensure that nothing happen. Xavier and Harry had told the other three about their suspicion of Ludo. As they woke up, they thought they had made it through the night. They were wrong.

Harry had just gotten out of bed when suddenly, the whole cottage was rocked by a massive explosion.

**KA-BLAM!**

Instantly, Harry hit the ground and began barking out orders. He looked over the balcony and down to the bottom floor where Harry could see a whole squad of Death Eaters outside the window. Ludo had definitely given them up.

"Xavier, George, down the stairs and behind the counters. Take out as many of them as you can. Angelina, I want you right here to act as a lookout and sniper. Severus, you are with me. We're going to find Ludo."

As Harry turned, he saw each of them nodding their head as they lay on the floor. In a rush, all of them moved. Harry swiftly jumped to his feet and launched himself down the stairs with Severus, Xavier, and George on his tail. Curses and spells exploded all around them as they slowly made their way across the main floor. As Harry got to the kitchen, he saw that a hole had been blown in the house where the back door had been. Knowing how breech tactics worked, he knew that there had to be someone searching parts of the house. He also knew that Ludo was probably outside the house.

He crawled across the empty main hallway and into the backroom. As Harry looked out the hole, he noticed Bagman running from the house towards a small group of Death Eaters that waited there. Harry leveled his wand towards his betrayer.

_"Stupefy!"_

Instantly, a red beam of light fired from Harry's wand and struck the coward directly in the back, sending him unconscious to the ground. Having accomplished that, Harry turned to the others in the group.

"Brooms at the ready!" Harry yelled over the cacophony of noise as he pulled his miniature broom out of his robe's pocket and enlarged it. Seeing the others do the same, he mounted it and pointed towards the hole in the back of the house.

"Wands ready, we're going out there and across. Does everyone have everything they need?" Harry asked quickly.

With a nod, everyone confirmed that they were ready and Harry launched himself forward, arching towards the hole in the wall. As they broke through the hole and out into the world, Harry directed the other four out and over their attackers while Harry himself angled towards the unconscious body that he had knocked out only moments before. Harry felt a rush as he pressed himself down against his broom, pushing it to its limits. At this speed, all Harry could see was a collection of flashes aimed towards him. As he continued to evade the assaults of his opponent, he dove to the ground and using all the strength he had, pulled Ludo Bagman off the ground and away from the battle.

As Harry caught up with his group, he was met with a variance of looks from those around him. However, none of them matched up with the look of pure hatred on George's face.

"What the hell did you go back for him for?" George screamed in anger as they hovered softly over the abandoned shore.

"I'll give him to the Norwegian authorities to hold on to. Then, when we're in charge, we can charge him with treason and ensure that he never sees the light of day again." Harry replied equally as angry. "Plus, no one deserves what they would have done with him."

"I'm not so sure about that." Xavier replied.

"Well, I am and that's what matters. Now, let's get across the ocean."

* * *

><p><strong>8:45 AM<strong>

Two and a half hours later, they landed on top of the very magical Ministry of Magic building in Oslo. In fact, the whole magic district in Oslo was much like Diagon Alley, completely invisible to the Muggles around them. Harry dismounted and made his way to the elevator on top of the building.

"I, Harry Potter, wish to meet with Henrik Vollen."

Within moments, the car inside the elevator had risen to the roof. They quickly rushed inside, dragging Ludo Bagman behind them. As they descended slowly into the Ministry, they caught their breath. They were finally there. As the car came to a stop, he saw his friend standing there waiting for them.

"Harry!" Henrik said with perfect English. He stood just a few years older than Xavier with platinum blond hair that was beginning to bald in the front. Overall, this gave him a look that was both aging and youthful. It allowed him to trick everyone into thinking he was either years older or younger than he actually was, a great advantage to an Auror such as himself.

"Henrik, how are you?" Harry said, stepping off the lift.

"I've been better." Henrik admitted. "We have finally had our first sighting of Lord Voldemort in our country. I thought we had managed to escape his wrath."

"You have been at the forefront of Muggle rights for quite some time, Henrik." Harry replied. "He simply did not have the strength to face a country that would not accept his belief unlike ours and others."

"Plus, you have something he wants." Xavier added, stepping forward.

"Xavier! How good to see you as well!"

"It's been a long time." Xavier replied as he shook the foreigner's hand.

"Too long." Henrik replied as he noticed Ludo Bagman lying on the ground for the first time. "Is that Ludo Bagman?"

"Yes. Why?"

"He is wanted here for the death of two Muggles." Henrik replied angrily. "We strongly believe that he convinced them to will them everything they had and then forced them to kill themselves."

"How do you know it was him?"

"They apparently hardly knew him yet left him everything. Plus, even though they shot themselves, there was magic all over the house."

"Well, this is great." Harry replied. "He just betrayed us to Lord Voldemort. Take him and try him."

Instantly, Henrik whistled for two men to drag Ludo away. Harry had a feeling he would never see him again and he found it mildly upsetting that he didn't feel bad for the man at all.

"Now, onto what we are really here for." Harry said, quickly changing the subject. "What does you and your ministry know about Thor's castle?"


	10. Disinformation and Contortion

**01.15.07**

**9:04 AM**

After watching Xavier, Harry, and their group fly off into the distance, Hermione turned back and made her way back to Central Command. While Harry and Xavier were gone, Ginny had been placed in charge of starting to rebuild the camp buildings that had been lost. However, instead of making them separate buildings, the idea had been given to connect the front door to Central Command to the rest of the camp, creating one super complex. This way, if they were ever attacked again, they could fall back to the Central Command bunker quicker.

"We're going to have to make less rooms that we did before." Ginny said as Hermione approached.

"Why is that?"

"I want to make the walls in the other rooms the same thickness as the ones in Command. However, we'll have to eliminate two structures worth of supplies in order to do this." Ginny replied.

"Only three rooms?" Hermione asked.

"I think if we go back through the rubble, we can find enough usable rubble to make four but that's going to be the extent of what we have." Ginny said.

"Do it then." Hermione shot back. "Hopefully, Harry and Xavier will be back by then."

"Harry seemed convinced that they weren't going to run into any trouble." Ginny said. Hermione thought she could sense some worry in her voice. But if she was worried, she hid it well. Ginny was definitely Hermione's best female friend and they knew each other very well so if Ginny was worried, Hermione would know. So the fact that Ginny seemed to be hiding something told Hermione more than anything her words could have possible told her.

"This is Harry we're talking about." Hermione replied cooly. "Harry gets in trouble rolling out of the bed in the morning."

"True." Ginny replied, her wall of invincibility crashing down.

"They'll be fine, Ginny. If there's anyone out there that would protect the pair of them, it would be George."

Finally, Ginny smiled.

"You're right." Ginny said with a chuckle. "Alright, enough talk, I've got a complex to rebuild."

* * *

><p><strong>1:26 PM<strong>

Over four hours later, Ginny had finished the shell of the first room of the complex. It was much larger than before and significantly taller, allowing for more beds in a bunk style. Hermione had remained on the outskirts of the project, watching as Ginny led gracefully. Hermione never thought she realized just how gifted some of her friends had been. When you compared everyone to Harry Potter or Albus Dumbledore or, if she was honest, herself, most people seemed completely normal. However, after years of being in the presence of so many, she knew that this wasn't the case.

Ron, Ginny, and George were all exceptional at what they did. Ron had been one of the best Aurors the Office had ever seen, third in line only to Harry and Xavier prior to his retirement. Ginny had been a magnificent Quidditch player, winning league MVP twice and was heir apparent to Gwenhog Jones as team captain. Finally, George had managed to turn Weasley's Wizard Wheezes into a worldwide corporation with dozens of offices worldwide.

They really were all amazing, Hermione thought to herself.

Suddenly, Hermione was brought into a place that she hadn't been in a long time. She was back in the Gryffindor Common Room, looking around. It had to have been sometime early in their third year. Harry and Hermione sat on the couch in front of the fireplace with Ron in the chair next to them. Harry was lying with his head on Hermione's lap like he often did when he was stressed out.

Their connection was something that Hermione could never replace. She had loved Ron and she loved Xavier. However, she had never met someone who was so truthful and devoted as Harry. The only time in all their years of friendship that Harry had been mad at her had been when Hermione's actions had led to his new Firebolt being taken from him. Other than that, it had always been the two of them. When Ron had walked away during the Horcrux hunt, Hermione knew that she couldn't. Ron and Harry had had their issues over the years but Hermione knew that he truly relied on Hermione more than anyone. She couldn't dare walk away from him then.

The image in her head was burning brighter than any memory she could remember. Harry, Ron, and herself just sitting there. George, plus Fred, sat at their favorite table in the corner, no doubt plotting their next escapade or the products that would eventually make them millions. Percy sat in the corner, scowling at his brothers, knowing that his attempts to stop them would be thwarted again, like had been numerous times.

At the far corner of the room sat Ginny. She sat with some of her classmates. However, Hermione noticed that as the scene moved forward, her eyes almost always seemed to come back to Harry. Even then, Hermione could see that the puppy love that she had previously had for Harry was gone. Instead, it had been replaced by a silent devotion, one that she was almost constantly embarrassed of.

Hermione remembered a conversation she had with Ginny during Harry's fourth year as he fawned over Cho Chang.

"What does she have that I don't?" Ginny growled angrily to Hermione as Harry oogled across the Great Hall at the Ravenclaw seeker.

"A few things." Hermione had replied honestly.

"Excuse me?" Ginny fired back.

"It's not that you lack anything. There are simply some things that she has."

"Like what?"

"First, she's a year older than Harry. There's a mystique there that Harry seems obsessed with. Second, she was on the Quidditch team."

"I would have been on the team this year if we had it!" Ginny shot back in anger.

"I don't doubt that but Harry has played against you. However, there's one thing that places you at a significant disadvantage."

"What is it?"

"The same problem I had." Hermione admitted. "You're too close. You're Ron's little sister. He's spent almost all of last summer in your presence and he sees you here all the time."

"You had the same problem?" Ginny asked in shock.

"During second year." she again admitted. "I really thought I loved him. I was right but it wasn't for us."

"What do you mean you were right?"

"I do love him and I'm pretty sure that he loves me. But we could never be together. No, I love him like the brother I never had and I'm the sister he never imagined possible. We really are best friends. Ron may be interested in more of the same things as Harry but I think that we connect on a much deeper level."

"How so?" Ginny asked. Hermione wasn't sure how the conversation got to be about her but she continued anyway.

"We're both alone in this world." Hermione said. "I'm from a totally different way of life and he's been left here on his own. He's the only one who can understand what he's going through. But, I'm one of the few people who can understand the solitude that he feels."

"But, you have us, Hermione. Both of you do." Ginny replied.

"We know. But, we can't rely on you for everything and so we have each other." Hermione said. "But, enough about that, what you need to do is forget about him for awhile."

The look on Ginny's face was priceless.

"How can I do that?" Ginny asked in shock.

"You don't have to actually forget about him. You just need to relax a bit. No offense, but he's obviously not interested in you right now. Give him some time. Give him some space and he'll come around."

* * *

><p>Hermione finally came out of her stupor to notice that a large portion of the room had been done. In fact, all that remained to be done was the roof. Hermione continued watching as Albus, Ginny, and Luna began to levitate large rocks on top of the building in order to create a building platform for the roof. For the next few minutes things went rather smoothly. Hermione felt someone approach her as she watched.<p>

"It's coming together nicely isn't it?" Hermione said, very aware of who was behind her.

"How did you know it vas me?" Viktor said softly.

"I thought you were supposed to have gone home." Hermione replied, intentionally failing to answer his question.

"Bulgaria is lost. Ve couldn't even make it to the Ministry. My men were attacked and nearly all off them vere captured or killed."

"So why did you come back?" Hermione said, finally turning around to face him. Suddenly, she noticed that Viktor was bleeding profusely from one his legs and there was another large cut on his leg.

"Because I have novhere to go." he said weakly. Instantly, Hermione stepped forward and dropped him to the ground before setting about to healing his leg. "The German army made it home. I got vord from Katarine. However, I do not believe that that the French made it home safely. Alek told me that he thought he saw much fighting when he flew over after us. He brought up the rear of our group."

"Did he..."

"His head was severed by the Minister of Magic. Treason." Viktor replied simply. "He vas my best friend. Now, he is dead."

Hermione didn't know what to say. However, she never got around to it. Just as she opened her mouth to try and put smoething together, a scream came from behind her. She turned and noticed Albus Dumbledore lying on the ground, barely breathing. Instantly, Hermione jumped up and ran to the fallen man. As she approached, she called out for Madam Pomfrey!

"Poppy! Outside! Now!" Hermione screamed. "Out of my way!"

Hermione forced her way through the crowd and to the elderly man's side. As she did, Poppy came barreling through the crowd to the other side.

"What's wrong with him?" Hermione asked softly.

However, the former school nurse did not reply. Instead, she went about waving her wand in a series of complex patterns over his body. Albus began coughing shallowly and wheezing when he breathed.

"He's been doing too much work. I'm almost positive that his body is lacking oxygen." Poppy diagnosed. "He's an old man and I'm sure the process of being brought back to life wasn't good for him."

"What can you do?" Ginny asked, tears of worry in her eyes.

"This isn't your fault." Hermione said to Ginny.

"Like hell it isn't!" Ginny replied defiantly.

"No, Miss Granger is correct." Poppy replied. "Any amount of work for a man his age would have caused it. He should have known."

"What can you do for him?" Hermione asked again.

"He needs to rest and he needs water. I'm sure that he has fluid in his lungs because his heart wasn't pumping enough oxygen to his body. It's called pulmonary edema." Poppy recited.

"Will he recover?" Luna asked softly.

Poppy waited a split second before she replied. It was all Hermione needed to hear.

"He'll never be the way he was before." Poppy replied cryptically.

"Will he live?" Hermione asked.

Poppy took a deep breath before she spoke.

"I wouldn't get my hopes up. He's in bad shape."

Suddenly, Albus began to breath very quickly.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked.

"The fluid in his lungs is preventing him from filling them up all the way."

"How do we get the fluid out?"

"WE don't. There's a whole list of magical remedies that we could try but nothing that's guaranteed to work. He's on his own now."

* * *

><p><strong>01.16.07<strong>

**9:02 AM**

After depositing Ludo into one of the empty holding cells in the Auror office, Harry's group made their way to Henrik's office. Harry had been in the Norwegian Ministry a few times over the years but this time seemed different. He had seemingly forgotten what it was like to operate in a normal world and he found it odd to be in a world that revolved around things like morals and laws.

"Harry, why are you asking me about this?" Henrik asked as he took his seat behind his incredibly large desk.

Harry was nearly ready to reply when Xavier stepped forward instead.

"Lord Voldemort is looking for it. If it still exists and he finds it before we do, it's the end of the match. We lose." Xavier said roughly.

"Who's we?" Henrik asked skeptically, obviously weighing his own country's role in all of this.

Instead of answer him directly, Xavier turned right to Harry.

"How many people are there on the planet?"

"Billions." Harry replied simply.

"Billions." Xavier said to Henrik, utilizing that as the answer to his question.

"Alright, I get your point." he said deeply. "Why is he looking for it?"

This time, it was Harry's turn to reply.

"When Thor died, he left his Hammer there. Whether it was due to natural power or Thor's power, it was imbued with an incredible power. It is possible that it could actually give the user an increased magical ability."

"How much?" Henrik asked again, obviously playing the politician. Harry knew Henrik and knew that the man harbored dreams of becoming his country's Minster of Magic. However, at this point, his political aspirations didn't matter to Harry.

"Henrik, if Lord Voldemort gets the Hammer, the world is over. There will be no way to stop him. Now, are you going to help me or not?" Harry asked, finally letting his temper boil over just a bit.

"Of course I will help you, Potter." Henrik replied calmly. "However, it isn't that simple. The information you are looking for is incredibly classified. I will have to talk to the Minister about it."

"We can do that." Harry replied. "Just come with us and explain it to him."

* * *

><p>Twenty-five minutes later, Harry alone had been granted an audience with the Norwegian Minister of Magic. As much as Harry liked Henrik, he disliked this man, Magnus Vollen, Henrik's oldest uncle. Nearly every member of the Vollen family was involved in the Ministry of Magic and while almost all of them were like Henrik, cheerful and eager to help, albeit mildly political in nature, Magnus was different. Magnus had been a special consultant to Cornelius Fudge during Harry's fifth year and it was during this time that Magnus made his first impression of Harry Potter.<p>

It hadn't been until years later that Harry had met Magnus during a world wizarding summit in Oslo. Harry had been selected as one of the few delegates Great Britain sent to the Summit and had been party to new legislation on policing magical populations worldwide. The head of the committee that had made the legislation had been Magnus. There, the two had their first meeting.

"Ah, Mr. Potter." Magnus said as he read the scroll full of names in front of him. "Come to spread more of your lies worldwide?"

All Harry could remember was wanting to burn the man where he stood. Instead, Joseph Mills, the Head of Aurors during that time, had spoken in his place.

"Do you have shit for brains, Vollen? The body of Lord Voldemort himself is found dead at Hogwarts after a battle and you still don't believe him."

"Cornelius didn't believe him and neither do I."

"Fudge changed his mind." Harry growled silently. "Don't you read the papers."

"Then, I underestimated his metal."

That had been nearly four years ago. Today, the man appeared to be in much worse shape. Since taking the Minister job two years ago, the blonde hair that he had sported then had gone completely grey and his eyes looked weak and weary. Harry was sure this was going to be an unpleasant conversation.

"Minister Vollen, I need a favor." Harry started, aware that sounding weak was the best way to get under this man's ego to get what he wanted.

Magnus didn't even look at him before he replied.

"No."

Harry cursed silently before leaning across the large desk in front of him and getting closer to the gruff Minister.

"Vollen, at least hear me out before you deny me."

"Mind your tongue, Potter." Magnus said as he turned to Harry. "You aren't in a friendly place."

"Like I needed reminding." Harry replied smartly. "Please just listen."

Magnus leaned back in his large chair, stroking his beard slowly.

"You have one minute."

Instantly, Harry took a large breath and began his recitation.

"Whether you choose to believe it or not, Lord Voldemort and Merlin have taken over in large portions of Europe. However, I believe that I have the way to stop them. Somewhere within your country is Thor's castle. There lies Mjolnir, I know you know what that is. That hammer has the power to destroy both Voldemort and Merlin. With it, we can end their reign of terror. All I need is the location of the castle."

Finally, Harry finished and breathed deeply, awaiting the storm that was sure to come. As he watched in fear, he waited for the Minister to erupt. Instead, Magnus stood and began to pace his office, obviously deep in thought. Harry kept silent, assuring himself that to speak would surely not end well. Finally, after several minutes of pacing, Magnus took his seat.

"You say that this Hammer will stop Voldemort?" Magnus asked.

"Yes." Harry replied breathlessly, not believing his ears.

"Good. We will be needing it." Magnus replied blandly. "Thank you for this information. You may leave."

Harry sat, completely dumbfounded.

"I'm sorry, Potter. Did I stutter? I said leave!"

"Magnus, if you don't give me the information as to the whereabouts of Thor's hammer, my country will be destroyed."

"You should have defended it better." Magnus replied uncaring.

"I know that." Harry admitted. "However, what's happened has happened and we are asking for your help. You know that he is already in your country?"

"That is simply not true, Potter. Voldemort wouldn't dare enter a country that opposed him so fervently. Where could you have heard such lies?"

"Your nephew." Harry replied sharply.

"That boy is working his way out of a job here. He is not the most reliable source and it is sad that someone so highly respected would trust someone so unstable."

"That _boy _has been working in this Ministry far longer than you have and is rumored to be your successor. In fact, there are murmurs that you can't handle the job anymore. That the stress of the international situation is getting to you. That you're getting paranoid." Harry growled lowly and instantly, he got the reaction he wanted.

The burly Minister quickly drew his wand and pointed it at Harry. Unfortunately for him, he was a politician, a lifelong delegate and he was faced one of the world's most experienced duelists. As Magnus stood, Harry had already pulled out his wand and silently disarmed the older man. Upon seeing his disadvantage, Vollen dove across his desk at Harry. However, with another quick wave, Harry sent his opponent flying backwards.

As Harry approached his downed enemy, he spoke again.

"I knew that's what you were doing. Only two years into a four year term and you're already losing followers here. So, your plan was to use Mjolnir to stop Voldemort, boosting your political status. Am I right?"

By this time, Harry had knelled next to the Minister. A quick nod of his head confirmed Harry's suspicion.

"If you give me the information I seek, I will make sure that once Voldemort and Merlin are gone, you and your people get the recognition that you deserve."

With another quick nod, Magnus returned to his seat. There, he signed what was obviously an executive order.

"Give this to archives. They'll give you the information you want."

Grabbing the paper quickly, Harry stood and with a quick nod of thanks, left the embarrassed Minister.

* * *

><p>"What was that?" Xavier asked as Harry walked out of Magnus' office.<p>

"Negotiations." Harry replied shortly.

"I wish my negotiations sounded like that." George added. "Instead, it was always a lot of boring lawyers blabbering on about how I can't buy them out, I can't take them over, blah blah blah. Zonko's doesn't exist anymore, does it? That's what I thought."

"Calm down, Georgie." Angelina said with a smile. "You're getting red in the face."

"Fine." George replied shortly. "What are we doing Harry?"

"Archives." Harry replied shortly as he led his small group towards the lifts. "Magnus was kind enough to give us the information that we were looking for."

"Kind enough?" Severus replied. "From what I remember of him, nothing he did was ever kind."

"You would know." George grumbled.

"Amusing, Weasley."

After a quick trip down the lift, the five of them emptied out into a small waiting room. The room itself was empty except for a small woman who was seated behind a small reception desk.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked in perfect English.

"Yes." Harry replied as he stepped forward. "Minister Vollen has given us this. We need this information."

Harry quickly handed the information over to the receptionist. She quickly took the page and began scanning it. For some strange reason, Harry noticed that she kept looking between him, the page, and the door behind him.

"Are you expecting someone?" Harry asked.

"Oh, no. My shift ends in a few minutes and I'm waiting for my replacement to show up." the woman replied with a smile as she returned to reading the form in front of her.

For the next couple minutes, the woman continued to read the form, making notes off the side. She had made nearly a whole page of notes until she finally looked up at me.

"Alright, I've located the information. However, I need to call the Minister himself and get him to come down and confirm. Can you wait for that?"

In that instant, Harry felt that he was about to be given the runaround. However, he shook off his annoyance and nodded slowly to insinuate that he would wait for the Minister. Harry and the other four took seats in the lobby and waited.

"Do you think Magnus knew that he would get called back down?" Xavier asked Harry.

"Of course. I wouldn't be surprised if we got down here and he denied ever issuing that."

"What will that mean?" George added.

"If it means what I think it means, we'll probably be accused of fraud and imprisoned until we're sent to trial, which we will lose." Harry replied miserably.

"Great." Angelina mumbled.

"We can't afford to spend any time in a holding cell." Snape said to Harry.

"Really?" Harry replied sarcastically as Snape glowered at him.

Suddenly, the doors to the lift opened and at least a dozen men dressed in royal blue robes filed out, followed slowly by a furious looking Magnus Vollen.

"Potter, do your lies know no limit?" Magnus raged.

Then, Henrik made his way around his father and looked at Harry, the same look his father had.

"Harry, what are you doing here? It is illegal for foreigners to be in our National Archives." Henrik growled.

Harry cursed silently before he replied.

"Henrik, I went to see your father. After some, how should I say this, tepid discussion, he granted me permission to view the files that I had requested. Obviously, if he has changed his mind, we will leave without any trouble."

"Unfortunately, that won't be possible." Henrik replied through gritted teeth. "It is impossible for anyone but the National Court to grant a foreign person entrance to the Archives."

"How the hell were we supposed to know that?" George roared.

"Ignorance is no excuse." Magnus replied softly with a vile smile.

"This was a set-up." Xavier spoke simply. Harry looked over and noticed that he was handling his wand very roughly. Never the jumpy one, Harry knew that he was really uncomfortable if he was ready to draw like that.

"Of course it was." Magnus shot back. "If you thought that I would ever let you get the information, you must have been mad."

"Why?" Snape asked shortly.

"Simple, protection. Lord Voldemort has agreed to allow us to keep control over our country if we turn you in. We knew you were here the second you crossed into our country."

Of all the things that Harry could have processed at that moment and taken it well, this was not it. As soon as the words left Magnus' mouth, Harry burst into laughter. For the next few moments, all that Harry could do was laugh. When he finally had recomposed himself enough to breath, Harry looked Magnus dead in the eye.

"It will be a cold day in hell before Lord Voldemort gives control to anyone. He may let you run the country by satellite, but you will always report to him. He gives power to no one."

"Potter, your lies sicken me. Lord Voldemort has been nothing but gracious to us." Magnus replied with a growl.

"While he kills Muggles everywhere else!" Angelina screamed and in that instant, she pulled her wand and attacked. Harry grabbed the other three and pulled them back to the other side of the reception desk.

"Angelina, fall back!" Harry bellowed as he took cover. Instantly, she heard his words and turned to dive over the desk. However, before she could get there, Magnus drew his wand and fired.

_"Avada Kedavra!" _

Harry watched as the green blast of light soared across the room and struck Angelina directly in the back. Instantly, the light left her eyes and she collapsed on top of the desk, sending papers and files flying.

Harry instantly looked over to see the look on George's face. However, what he saw was not what he expected. Completely unlike when Fred had died or when he learned that Ron had been killed, George simply looked stunned, a single tear running down his face as spells flew passed them. Harry crawled over to George.

"George. Everything will be ok." Harry whispered over the noise of the explosions going on around them. George seemed calm and for that, Harry was worried.

Instantly, George roared the most horrible noise that he had ever heard and stood. He leveled his wand and fired.

_"Confringo!"_

As soon as the spell collided with the wall behind Magnus and Henrik, the room exploded. Shrapnel and debris flew everywhere as Harry could feel the heat of the explosion on his neck. Harry looked up and saw the vile look on George's face and the cuts and burns from the resulting explosion. The look on George's face was one of the most horrifying and saddening things that he had ever seen.

"George..."

"Don't, Harry. Just don't." George replied harshly.

Harry stood up and looked at the other side of the desk. What he saw was simply horrific. Blood was everywhere as most of the men that had come down the elevator lay dead on the floor. In fact, only one man other than Magnus and Henrik survived and neither of them looked very good.

George kneeled down in front of Magnus and got very close to his face.

"Now, Vollen, listen to me very closely. If you don't give us the information we're looking for in the next minute, I will remove Henrik's left hand. In five minutes, I remove the other hand. If in ten minutes, you don't give the information we want, I will kill him and every member of your family."

George pulled out his wand and aimed it at Henrik.

"Now, what do you say to that?"


End file.
